A new piece of public artwork reflecting a village's brewing history has been unveiled.

Mid Norfolk MP George Freeman unveiled two standing stones, made from York stone and carved by Norfolk stonemason Teucer Wilson, at a ceremony attended by residents of The Hops - a new development of 88 family homes in Hingham, near Norwich.

The artwork reflects the brewing heritage of the land on which the new homes have been built, with one stone - standing two metres high - inscribed with the first stanza of the poem 'Hops, oh wonderful hops' and the other stone sculpted into a metre-high hop.

The work is the latest in a series of public artworks commissioned by Abel Homes, which in 2008 committed to creating a public artwork by a nearby artist at each of the sites where it builds new homes.

Unveiling the stones, Mr Freeman said that art should be at the heart of the community and praised Abel Homes for the approach it takes to development.

'To be really successful in development in any locality you need to understand the place, love the place and be committed to the place,' he said.

'You are here and of us, and build for us, and we need more of that in the county.

'Everybody wants to live in a vibrant village with a real community. The key to that, when it comes to building new homes, is quality. If we build junk, people won't want to come here.

Welcoming the residents to their new community, Abel Homes chairman Tony Abel said: 'Hingham is very close to my heart.

'My family have a close connection to the village going right back to my great great grandfather, who was a gardener at Hingham Hall, all the way through to my parents, who were married in the church.

'The first new homes we built as a company were here in Hingham and we are delighted to be building much-needed new homes in the village once again.

'Ten years ago we made a commitment that we would commission a local artist to make a piece of public artwork at every site where we build new homes.

'The idea was to create a modern-day 'village sign', something which can give the new community a sense of identity and act as a centrepiece.'