Proud builders hid secret plaque in Norwich Castle

But the find will not shed vital new light on how the Normans constructed the castle or reveal fresh detail about the prisoners incarcerated there in the 19th century.

Norwich Castle (Image: Picture: Simon Finlay Photography.)

Rather, the discovery is a plaque hidden by 1970s workers, proud at the part they played in the castle's 950-year history.

The plaque was hidden for decades (Image: Norfolk Museums Service)

The plaque was discovered by contractors working on the Royal Palace Reborn project, which will restore the castle's keep to how it looked in its 12th century heyday.

READ MORE: See inside the £15m revamp breathing new life into Norwich Castle

A visualisation of how the revamped keep would look (Image: Haley Shape Design)

While stripping back the plasterboard wall within the modern staircase and passageway, which runs parallel to the keep wall's east façade.

That was the staircase accessed from the landing of the stone stairs in the old museum entrance, which took visitors up to the original entrance to the keep - via the Bigod tower and its carved Norman doorway.

Norwich Castle (Image: Morgan Sindall)

READ MORE: Norwich Castle pictures from the 1800s to modern day

In peeling back the plasterboard, contractors found the plyboard plaque screwed into place underneath.

Workers hid the plaque in the 1970s (Image: Norfolk Museums Service)

Along with the 1978 date, the plaque, complete with pencil lines drawn to ensure the Letraset wording was in a straight line, gives the name of the workmen - John Hardaker and Richard Webb of Robin Anderson Ltd.

READ MORE: Steel arrives for crucial stage in Norwich Castle keep revamp

Dr Tim Pestell (Image: Archant 2019)

Dr Tim Pestell, Royal Palace Reborn project curator, said: "This plaque is part of the history of the building and so are the men who worked on it during the 1970s – John Hardaker and Richard Webb.

"We’d love to know if they’re still with us and have memories of their time working on the castle, or if their families remember them saying anything about the job.

"While our project is about restoring the castle’s royal grandeur, equally its history is also bound up with all those workers who’ve laboured on the site through its 900-year history – from the original stone masons who built the keep, through to the modern contractors of today.

"Most of them, of course, we don’t know the names of, so it was lovely to find this personal record – John and Richard were obviously proud to be working on the castle – it’s an opportunity that not many people have, so it would be really great to find out more."

The revamp project is due to be completed next year.