It is a crumbling gem among Bradford's history. Now a hidden heritage is being restored to its former glory after being bought for £59,000 at auction.

But it is the mysteries hidden within the stone-built property that are creating the most excitement. For the remaining part of Manningham's Old Hall is throwing up priceless artefacts that create a wonderful picture of Bradford's past.

Entrepreneur Graham Hall and his business partners are amazed by what they have found. The Grade Two listed hall dates back to the reign of Henry VIII but its historical treasures were hidden behind plaster and false ceilings and remained secret from the outside world.

They were preserved underneath, however, and Graham is increasingly amazed by the daily findings. They include massive stone fireplaces with carved masonry. There is even a priest hole where men of the cloth hid during their persecution under King Henry's reign. Now workmen have uncovered a tunnel under the building thought to have been used as an escape route during the Civil War.

But Graham says the most amazing finds are the massive oak beams, held together by pegs. The biggest beam is the size of a tree.

All will be kept as features of the building.

Graham and co-directors of his property development business, Harry Hall and Co, plan to use it as their headquarters and Graham will live there.

The renovation of the building is expected to be finished within a month. Graham said: "For about 100 years, things have been covered up to hide them because they weren't the fashion."

He hopes to turn the historic building into a mediaeval banqueting centre, where the public can see the treasures, by the end of this year.

Co-director Brian Beamsley said: "We find something different every day. We have never known anything like it.

"It's unique and the craftsmanship can't be matched. You could never build anything like it again."

Graham said he was sitting his office in Manningham to show his confidence in the area. "It's one of the most historic parts of Bradford and should be appreciated."

The Old Hall stood at the top of what is now Marlborough Road.

Its owners and occupiers included Nicholas Tong, a head horseman to Henry VIII.

It was owned in the 1700s by Ellis Cunliffe, whose daughter married John Bolling.

It then passed by marriage to Richard Margerison - a member of a Manningham family dating back to the 1300s - who married John Bolling's daughter, Phoebe, in 1803.

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