One of the oldest steam engines in the world has been winched over the rooftops of Whitstable today as it returned to the town 189 years after it first arrived.
The Invicta steam engine was lifted into the Whitstable Community Museum and Gallery from its current home in Canterbury.
The ninth oldest surviving locomotive hauled its first train on the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway in 1830 and remained in active service until 1839.
The historic Invicta locomotive has been taken to a new home at the Whitstable Community Museum today. The steam engine, which was in service in 1830, was the first to operate a regular timetabled passenger service
The locomotive has played a significant part in rail history and is the longest-preserved steam engine after it was taken out of service in 1839. It was the first locomotive on the Canterbury-Whitstable line which was known as the Crab and Winkle
The six-tonne engine was lifted above the rooftops of Whitstable as it moved from seven miles away in Canterbury to its new home. The relocation cost £70,000 and took months of planning
The steam engine played a significant role in locomotive history, being the first in the world to haul a regular timetabled passenger service and the first to be actively restored.
Invicta, the first steam engine to operate in the South-East, was built by Robert Stephenson and Company in Newcastle and was the first steam-powered passenger service on the colloquially-known Crab and Winkle Line.
The line on the Kent coast, which opened in 1825, is one of the oldest in Britain and is believed to be the first to transport passengers in steam-hauled trains.
The six-tonne locomotive will be on permanent display at the museum and a £70,000 plan was in place to ensure its safe arrival, according to Kent Online.
The High Street of Whitstable was closed today as the six-tonne locomotive was lifted into its new home where it will be open to the public from July 18. The Invicta's chimney and smokebox were dismantled for the relocation
A stationary beam engine, one of the few remaining stationary winding engines in the world, was also lifted into the museum and will be on display alongside the famous Invicta.
The locomotive's name comes from the motto of the flag of Kent and means undefeated in Latin.
It is believed to have been
