Or, Live Science kinda sorta points out, it might not. But the thing sold as a “garden ornament” is certainly ancient and mysterious:
The hefty carving was up for sale as a garden ornament when archaeologist and TV presenter James Balme found it. The carving, which was very dirty, may have been plowed up many years ago, Balme said. Despite the carving’s poor shape, he thought it was no ordinary ornament; so he purchased it and carefully cleaned it.
When he was done conserving it, Balme saw a stone carving with an extremely complex pattern that is difficult to describe. It’s possible the “pattern carved may be some form of writing,” Balme told Live Science in an email. The carving’s use is unknown, though it could be “a keystone from an archway or indeed a vaulted ceiling,” Balme said.
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“Garden ornament” may conjure up images of tacky gnomes or other modern-day items. However, over the past few years archaeologists studying garden ornaments have made several interesting discoveries. In 2009, the BBC reported on a garden ornament in Dorset that turned out to be an ancient Egyptian terracotta vase.
Another, more spectacular, example of garden ornament archaeology comes from the modern-day town of Migdal located near the Sea of Galilee in Israel. A team of archaeologists studied ancient architectural remains in Migdal that were being reused as garden ornaments or chairs. These remains aided them in discovering an ancient town, which would have flourished at the time of Christ.
Hmmmm. TV presenter. Hmmmmmm.