Further information:
This long, approximately 15 cm (about 5.91 in) iron safety pin was found during excavations in the 1990s and is one of few of its kind in Norway. The grave was found beneath the reconstructed longhouse. Because of the organic sealing material found (birch tar), the brooch was likely in an urn made of organic material. Before the cremated bones were placed in the urn, they were washed and crushed, and the brooch lay on the bottom of the urn. The grave belonged to an older man of about 50 years, who lived here in the pre-Roman Iron Age, probably in the 3rd century BCE. 

The brooch symbolizes power—it stands as the sole artifact discovered in an unmarked grave within the burial ground at Veien and hails from a time when iron production was in its infancy in Norway. It dates to a time when iron production was just beginning in Norway, making it a prominent status symbol of its era. 

It is plausible that the man held a significant role in Veien, possibly participating in key ceremonies related to burials or sacrificial feasts. Typical of Celtic culture, the brooch hints at a network of connections between Veien and the Celts on the continent, suggesting trade and gift exchange.

Most other discoveries in Norway featuring this type of brooch are situated near the primary routes leading to the fertile agricultural regions along the Oslo Fjord. This may indicate an alliance network among influential and prosperous clans, likely thriving on the agricultural surplus from these fertile regions.