Niall McLaughlin Architects (NMA) and Purcell have won a competition to build a new national museum for religion and religious art at Auckland Castle, County Durham.

Auckland Castle, considered to be the third most historically-significant ecclesiastical complex in Europe, is in the process of being transformed into a major visitor attraction by its owner, businessman and philanthropist, Jonathan Ruffer.

Shortlisted for the 2013 Stirling Prize, NMA will be heading up the £17m (US$28m, €21m) museum development on the thousand-year-old site.

The museum development is part of a £50m (US$84m, €62m) masterplan to convert the historic site into an all-encompassing heritage attraction.

NMA revealed the structure would have the ‘feel of a medieval tithe barn’. It will be divided into bays, mirroring the site's ancient foundations. The rest of the castle will also undergo a revamp, guided by conservation specialists and architects, Purcell.

Construction work on the museum will begin at the end of 2015 and should be completed by Q2 2018. The project will be situated on the castle’s existing 16th-century Scottish Wing.

David Ronn, Auckland Castle’s chief executive said the new wing would house “a world-class exhibition of 5,000 years of faith...it will have around 450sq m (1,500sq ft) of permanent exhibition space.” Ronn hopes the museum will help draw more than 130,000 visitors a year.

The central attraction will be the rare paintings by spanish artist Francisco de Zurbarán, acknowledged as some of the most significant religious treasures in Europe. With this attraction andPuy du Fou’s partnership with the site, Auckland Castle looks set to become a major visitor attraction hub in the coming years.

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