FOUR leather chairs made for Queen Victoria but lost for nearly 90 years have been rediscovered and returned to the monarch's former home at Osborne House, Whippingham.

The chairs were made for the sumptuous Durbar Room at Osborne when it was furnished in an Indian theme for banqueting but sold in 1916.

After being discovered in a private collection, the chairs have been bought for an undisclosed sum with support from the Heritage Lottery Fund, the National Art Collections Fund, the Island Friends of Royal Osborne and the Maharajah Duleep Singh Centenary Trust.

Michael Hunter, head curator at Osborne House, said: "We are extremely happy that the chairs have been returned to the Durbar Room and applaud the support of all the partners who have made it possible."

He said: "We restored the room last winter and it is fantastic to have the original furniture back where it belongs.

"The chairs are just magnificent, designed 100 years ago with intricate Indian carving to reflect that on the walls of the room."

Tessa Hilder, Heritage Lottery fund manager for south-east England, said: "It's fantastic that these magnificent chairs can now go on public display.

"What better place to put them than the room for which they were originally designed?"

The chairs, made from walnut and leather, were designed by Sikh artist Bhai Ram Singh in 1890 under the supervision of John Lockwood Kipling, who was commissioned by Queen Victoria to design the Durbar Room.

The original set contained 35 chairs and five side tables.