Believed to have been lost for more than 40 years, an 'internationally important' 18th-century shell collection has been returned to English Heritage after being found in a skip.

Containing more than 200 specimens, including an extinct species and several believed to have been sent back from Captain Cook’s ill-fated third voyage, the collection will be exhibited for the first time in more than a century at the Chesters Roman Fort and Museum from today (March 13).

The vast collection was the lifework of Bridget Atkinson (1732-1814).

Despite never travelling outside Britain and rarely venturing out of Cumbria, she compiled more than 1,200 shells from across the world, passing on her collecting passion to her grandson, John Clayton (1792-1890).

Mr Clayton grew up with Chesters Roman Fort in his garden, and his own archaeological collections form the basis of the museum there.

Although most of her collection was sold off with the Clayton estate in 1930, about 200 of the shells were displayed in the museum and later loaned to the zoology department of Armstrong College, which is now Newcastle University.

Seeming to disappear forever in the 1980s during a university office clear-out, it has been revealed that the shells had been saved from a skip by passing lecturer Dr John Buchanan.

Dr Frances McIntosh, English Heritage’s collections curator for Hadrian’s Wall and the North East, said: "We’ve always known about Bridget Atkinson’s collection but had believed it completely lost.

"To discover that the shells have not only survived but been kept safe and loved all this time is nothing short of a miracle."

The Buchanan family said: “Our father was a marine zoologist and Senior Lecturer from 1958 until his retirement, based at The Dove Marine Laboratory in Cullercoats.

"He rescued the collection as he believed in conservation, and the shells remained in our family home for 35 years.

"Following the death of our mother, we discovered that the shells were part of the Clayton Collection.

"We were delighted to return the collection to English Heritage for future generations to enjoy.”

To find out more about Chesters Roman Fort and Museum, or to book, visit www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/chesters