A small dragon head has been found in the findings-rich site of Birka, historic harbor near Lake Mälaren in Sweden:

Birka, on Lake Mälaren, 40kms from Stockholm, is thought to be Sweden's oldest town and has been the site of excavations since the 17th century. But the discovery of the dragon's head is one of the most exciting finds in recent years.

'We did not understand immediately what we had found - it took a few minutes,' said Sven Kalmring, professor at the Centre for Baltic and Scandinavian Archaeology, who's been digging in the ancient town's port together with the Department of Archaeology at Stockholm University.

The little dragon's head had been on an ancient costume needle but the needle had long disintegrated. 'To the trained eye it's obvious that the dragon is of a design peculiar to Birka,' said Kalmring. 'It's very exciting.'"