A 17th Century lady has a new gleam in her eye - thanks to some expert restoration work.

Edward Bower's painting of Lady Elizabeth Drake, completed in 1646, is one of several works to have been scrubbed-up thanks to a £10,000 conservation project.

Friends of York Art Gallery paid for the conservation work, which has seen eight of the most important paintings from a collection of nearly 1,000 expertly restored and cleaned.

Art experts were brought in during the gallery's nine-month closure to check the condition of its paintings - many of which had been kept in stores behind the scenes and had not been on show for many years.

Friends of the gallery - an independent group made up of interested members of the public - then donated the cash for the eight key works to be restored, along with five frames.

The delicate conservation process brings paintings back to life, showing original colours and detail which have often been masked the slow build up of grime.

The paintings will now be back on show in their original glory when the gallery - which has itself seen a £445,000 refurbishment - reopens next month. Caroline Worthington, curator of art for York Museums Trust, said: "The conservation process has seen years of grime removed to bring up colour, depth and detail in the paintings - which is a delight to see."

Corita Myerscough, chairwoman of the Friends, said: "We are delighted to have been able to play a part in the refurbishment of the gallery in this way."

Three exhibitions will be showing at the gallery when it re-opens on March 19.

Monet and Rembrandt paintings loaned from London's National Gallery will feature in a Reflections show, while historic patchwork quilts from York Castle Museum will be on display in Through The Needle's Eye - 250 Years Of Quilt Making.

Visitors will be able to see different views of the city of York at the third show, called Looking At York.

Updated: 10:13 Monday, February 21, 2005