A mysterious medieval wall painting found beneath the floorboards of a bishop’s bedroom has given up its secrets through detective work by Dr Mark Horton of Bristol University’s Department of Archaeology and Anthropology.

The painting which shows a partly-clad woman wearing a transparent dress was found by builders three years ago while carrying out renovations on the Bishop’s Palace at Wells, Somerset.  It was found in the space between two floors in the Virgin's Tower next to heating pipes where the whitewash had fallen away.

Enough remains of the painting to date it to between 1460 and 1470 which would place it as part of the decoration of the throne room of Bishop Thomas Beckynton who was Chancellor of England and a friend of the Pope.

Some think that the woman could be of ill repute due to her low-cut gown – and even possibly Mary Magdalene.  However, this seems very unlikely and Dr Horton’s research has shown that it’s most likely she is part of a scene representing a medieval garden indicating paradise.

The key to the identification is a medieval manuscript that shows the actual throne room with the wall paintings accurately depicted.  The manuscript is at Trinity College, Cambridge but a Victorian copy exists in the Special Collections of Bristol University and this shows the playwright Thomas Chaundler presenting one of his plays to Bishop Beckynton in 1460. 

Dr Horton said: “The amazing thing is that this medieval manuscript accurately records what was on the wall.  This included details of foliage and fruits which we then were able to find behind the heating pipes next to the image of the lady. 

“It was rather like something out of the Da Vinci Code, creeping beneath the bishop’s floorboards to come face to face with this incredible piece of medieval art.”

This discovery has inspired the current Bishop, the Right Rev Peter Price, who lives in the palace, to want to restore the throne room to its former glory with the enchanting painted lady in pride of place along with the rest of the earthly garden.

Dr Horton’s discoveries will be shown on 'Inside Out West' on BBC ONE in the West at 7.30pm on Monday 6 February.  Viewers outside the West region can see it on satellite channel 956.