AS a work of art, it is quite literally the best thing since sliced bread.

From a distance Kate Harding has created a mosaic of an oak tree in a field of rape. It is only when you get up close you can see it is made of 750 pieces cut from crusty white loaves.

The bread has been treated to prevent it going mouldy but the technique used – which Kate adapted from her knowledge of restoring antiques – is top secret.

The work, which took five months to complete, is on display at Winchester Cathedral as part of an exhibition in which artists re-imagine the treasures of Hyde Abbey.

Kate, 33, from Sutton Scotney, said she wanted it to reflect the toil of Hyde Abbey’s agricultural and religious communities.

“Each individual piece of bread is symbolic of a person and without the collective nature of the bread, it could not happen,” she said.

The undergraduate, who is studying for a BA in Fine Art Sculpture at the Winchester School of Art, said the piece was for sale but she would like it to stay in Winchester as a memorial to the exhibition.

Hyde Abbey vanished in the 1530s as part of the dissolution of the monasteries. The exhibition, “Re- Imagining Hyde Abbey”, is part of the Hyde 900, which is celebrating the 900th anniversary of the burial of King Alfred at the abbey.