A couple were left stunned after finding a 10ft painting of Jesus on a cross inside their barn - created over 70 years ago.

Sarah Worne and her husband bought a plot of land of around one acre near Lostwithiel in Cornwall last October.

The site included the barn which the couple said was filled with 30 pieces of fiberboard sheets.

And behind one of the last sheets of fiberboard was a painting of Jesus.

The painting - a 10ft (3m) tall cross - depicts the crucifixion of Jesus and possibly the Virgin Mary and his disciple John.

Mrs Worne, a 63-year-old former arts teacher, said: "I was pushing the sheets back to my husband and I am passing them back to him - and as I pull forward the last sheet to pass it to Mike he couldn't see what was behind it and I just said 'Jesus!'"

"And he said 'Why, what have you found?' and I said 'No, I mean it is Jesus'."

"There's only a little bit of surface mould and has got a few very small patches were it is cracked but the rest of the painting it is in a remarkably good condition."

"There is very little damage but it would be lovely to seeing it cleaned so the colours can shine."

The artwork shows Jesus on the cross beardless and wearing a plain white cloth.

On the left side there is a woman all in blue possibly depicting Mary and on the right side a man dressed in dark blue and black.

Initially she thought it was similar to the artwork produced in Newlyn from the 1920s and 1930s.

But, recently she found a faint signature on the back of the painting which said Teresa Fuller 1951 - 1952.

Mrs Worne said very little was known about the artist and she had appealed for people's help to find out more about who painted it.

To protect it, they approached Reverend Sheila Bawden of St Bartholomew's Church in Lostwithiel.

And now the painting is housed in there.

Mrs Worne said: "It is got a bit of mould and damp on the painting - so we thought we move it to the church where it would be in a drier space."

"I was also hoping that the people in the town of Lotswithiel will be able to see it and give me some history about it."

Mrs Worne said she had so far failed to get in contact with the previous owners to ask more about the painting.

But is hoping to find an appropriate place for it to reside.

She said: "I am intrigued with the story and with the journey that it is going to take me on and who I am going to meet along the way."

"I studied history of arts at college and then I went on to paint and do ceramics in China and then I got into teaching."

"My passion is also birds of pray so I used to pain birds so I could be close to them and in this Jesus painting he does have an Eagle emblem in the top which means power from above - I always liked the symbolism in paintings."