Leeds City Council (LCC) has reopened a historic 17th century building at the city's Thwaite Mills Watermill Museum, following the completion of a £200,000 restoration scheme.
The scheme, which started in September 2009, has seen the combined drying shed and warehouse revitalised to allow visitors to view the site's underground heating system used to dry and store putty and ground chalk.
Three exhibition and gallery spaces have also been created as part of the project, which will be used for permanent and temporary displays exploring the watermill's history dating back to 1641.
The Department for Culture, Media and Sport/Wolfson Museums and Galleries Improvement Fund and the Thwaite Mills Society funded the scheme, which was carried out by the council.
LCC executive member for leisure Adam Ogilvie said: "We are excited to be opening up this drying shed and warehouse which is of such important significance to industrial heritage not just in the UK but the world."
Dr Margaret Faull, chair of the Thwaite Mills Society, added: "The opening of the magnificently restored warehouse/drying shed at Thwaite Mills Watermill is the final stage in the work that the Thwaite Mills Society set out to achieve some thirty years ago in preserving a major part of Leeds' industrial heritage."
