A MUSEUM service has spent £14,000 more than budgeted for on two exhibitions it staged this year.

The Colchester and Ipswich Museums Service said the cash had been spent on the Adorn exhibition at Colchester Castle and Kiss & Tell exhibition at Ipswich's Christchurch Mansion.

Adorn: Jewellery, The Human Story is the first major new project at Colchester Castle since a revamp was completed in 2014.

More than two years in the planning, visitors have been invited to journey through time from the Bronze Age to today taking in 200 star objects including jewellery from at home and pieces from as far away as Pompeii which have been loaned from the British Museum.

Themed events will be held until the end of the showcase in February.

The Kiss & Tell exhibition held last winter saw Auguste Rodin’s iconic life-size marble sculpture The Kiss moved from the Tate to the East of England.

It is not known how much the two exhibitions cost to put on.

A spokesman for Colchester Council said: "The £14,000 overspend on exhibitions relates to the Kiss & Tell exhibition in Ipswich's Christchurch Mansion and the Adorn exhibition at Colchester Castle.

"In particular, it proved difficult to estimate the costs of transit and installation of the three-tonne statue from the Tate.

"Kiss & Tell was the first exhibition delivered by the museums service on this scale and to such significant audiences.

"Fortunately, through a mixture of additional income, external funding from Arts Council England and savings elsewhere, this cost is anticipated to be absorbed without extra cost to Colchester or Ipswich tax payers."

The figures were revealed in a scrutiny panel agenda set to go before councillors on Tuesday.

The agenda also showed an overspend of £20,000 on water costs at Colchester Castle which is being investigated.

The spokesman added: "The £20,000 water bill appears to be an anomaly the council is currently querying."