A PALM-sized lead bust of a Roman goddess found in Swindon is that of the Egyptian goddess Isis.

The bust was found in July, at the Groundwell Ridge Roman site in North Swindon, during the final days of an extensive archaeological dig, carried out by English Heritage.

An expert on Roman religion in Britain, Dr Martin Henig of Oxford University, confirmed its identity last week.

Dr Henig has suggested that the figurine could have been cast from a clay mould made with a bronze fitting of a jug handle or a steelyard weight.

He also said that rather than indicating a temple or a shrine it seems more likely that the goddess, who was worshipped by both the Egyptians and the Romans, was venerated on the house altar, probably together with other deities.

However archaeologist Bryn Walters of the Association for Roman Archaeo-logy says that the discovery now lends even more weight to his first theory about the site being a religious sanctuary.

He said: "This site has all the features of religious sanctuary it has a lot of water, oodles and oodles of it, which could indicate an Isis sanctuary.

"We need to find more of these deities to be sure. One could have been dropped by someone passing through, another five would prove it."

Peter Crisp, a metal detectorist from the Wyvern Historical and Detector Group who found the deity, said he was delighted with the news. He said: "It is nice to know that it has proved to be Isis, I suppose that makes it my biggest find."

Anthony Beesson, the Roman expert who first suggested that the deity may be Isis, said: "This bust is one of the few images of Isis found in this country. I hope this will mean a change in the textbooks and should take pride of place in a local museum."