Bronze Age Golden Eagle bone found in Oxfordshire

A pin made from the toe bone of a Golden Eagle has been discovered by archaeologists during work to build a park and ride in Oxfordshire.

Cotswold Archaeology found an Iron Age settlement and the Early Bronze Age cremation burial of a young child at the site in Eynsham, with the bone pin one of the artefacts uncovered.

The Golden Eagle toe bone that was found at the site (Cotswold Archaeology).

The bone pin is thought to be the only example found in a funerary context in England. Jo Barker, post-excavation manager for the project, said the identification of the burial and the unique eagle pin made from the eagle phalanx (toe bone) was "extremely exciting".

"The choice of eagle bone is likely to have been significant and it is possible such an object could have been considered talismanic, or was linked perhaps with afterlife beliefs, raising further questions about its use as a pyre good for a child," she added.