Workmen have uncovered a macabre piece of history while converting an old Brighton building into a beauty salon.

As workmen stripped away the rotting roof beams, they discovered a creaky sign showing the building used to be an undertakers nearly two centuries ago.

At first Clare Rogers, owner of the new Treatment Rooms premises in New Road, Brighton, was worried her beauticians would be spooked by the ghoulish find.

She said: "We didn't know anything about it at all and even the freeholders were surprised because the last they knew, the building used to be a bank.

"You can see an 18 on the sign but the rest of the date is worn off. I told the builders not to show the girls because I didn't want them feeling uncomfortable.

"There must be good feng shui because it is very peaceful here. There is a nice feel to the building so if there is a ghost it is a nice one."

The grade II listed building has been empty for the past five years.

About £500,000 has been lavished on restoring the building, much of it spent on levelling and replacing ageing floor and roof joints.

The new beauty centre features an Eastern-style relaxation room, which is full of exotic furniture imported from India, where clients can chill out after treatments.

Mrs Rogers said the salon, which opened on Monday, would offer all the latest treatments, including stone therapy, which is aimed at relaxing clients by placing hot stones on energy points in the body.

She said she hoped the project would contribute towards the regeneration of New Road, where developments include the rebuilding of the 1806 colonnade and a £1 million housing and shopping complex.