Roman Eagle

Sculpture of an eagle with a serpent in its beak, recovered from a construction site in the City of London. Archeologists were naturally suspicious that it must be a fake, given its remarkable condition, but unspecified tests have convinced the Museum of London Archaeology that it is a genuine Roman artifact of the 1st or 2nd century CE. It is just over two feet (65 cm) tall. Installing this in London must have been a statement of imperial power in the far-flung provinces.