A drawing hanging for years over the fireplace at her parents' home had always fascinated Aurelia Metcalfe.

She knew the three female figures were her mother, Elsie, and they were drawn in the 1930s by a "famous artist".

But it was the throwing out of the drawing by her father, following her mother's death, that sparked her yen to find out more.

"We knew it was mum and drawn by Edward Lacey, but I never asked about it," said Mrs Metcalfe.

Now her hunt for information on the artist has lead to a revelation she hardly expected to discover.

Among the archives at Bradford Central Library was a photograph of a bronze bust, a nude of her mother, created by the Slade educated Bradford artist Edward Hill Lacey.

Mrs Metcalfe's mother had taken with her to her grave the knowledge that in her youth she was a model and inspiration for some of Lacey's most powerful work.

"Mum never mentioned anything about it. So you can image what a shock it was when I saw the bust and my mum again as a young woman. It was like a bolt out of the blue.

"It was very moving - and I was also very proud. It must have taken some courage.

"It must have been quite a daring thing then. She was only young - in her teens and 20s - and working in a textile mill at the time."

Mrs Metcalfe, 57, of Harewood Road, Keighley, was also staggered by the busts' likeness to her 34-year-old daughter Michelle.

"She had tears in her eyes when she saw it. She said she couldn't believe it was her grandma."

Now the family are keen to trace what happened to the bust, so that they can see it for real.

Mrs Metcalfe's hunt has so far drawn a blank. There is no trace at Cartwright Hall, where Lacey exhibited on at least three occasions.

And none at the Royal Academy, London, where it was on show at Burlington House in 1934, causing a stir because of its quasi-religious tone.

"It seems to have vanished. But it must be somewhere because it is such a beautiful piece," said Mrs Metcalfe, who believes her mum met Lacey when she was working in Bingley and lived in Micklethwaite.

She even went on to travel with him to Paris.

Her mother first featured in the drawing The Three Graces, originally called Clogs and Shawls.

She went on to further modelling sessions which included the bust.