Historians are crying out for a place to safely display Gravesham’s artefacts after priceless relics were stolen.

The council keeps many thousands of pieces of the borough’s past in storage and 22 items were taken back in March.

Five months on, they are no closer to being recovered.

History lovers are angry over the loss and some believe it is time Gravesham had its own museum.

On the night of Saturday, March 2, thieves stole a collection of artefacts from a storage facility at the back of Gravesham council’s Brookvale depot site.

It is believed their original intention was to steal metal from the building, but they failed and broke in instead.

Descriptions and photographs of the missing items supplied to the police have now been made available to the Gravesend Messenger.

A spokesman from Gravesham council said: “The items have little intrinsic or resale value but were of undoubted historic interest. To date none have been recovered.

"Security at the site has been reviewed and appropriate measures have been taken.”

Secretary of the Gravesham Heritage Association Tony Larkin, 75, said: “It’s not about the resale value of these items, it is about heritage we have lost.

“We, the public, own those artefacts; the council serves the community and they are supposed to be safeguarding them, but they failed and we will probably never see those items again.”

Historian Christoph Bull said: “It is a huge shame for the history of the borough and what it illustrates is that Gravesham is in desperate need of a decent museum.

“There have been little exhibitions set up around the town in the past, such as in the Old Town Hall, but they were volunteer-run and didn’t last. What we need is serious, long term investment, with well-presented and regularly changed exhibitions.

“I feel quite sorry for the council – it just doesn’t have the funds to build and maintain such a large project. Our best hope is to apply for lottery and heritage funding.”