Ancient Greek Corinthian Helmet

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About the Item

Corinthian helmet with Bull Horns and Lotus Flower Decoration. Archaic Period, c.550-500 BC. Cast, hammered and incised bronze. An exceptionally well preserved example of one of the most iconic ancient Greek artefacts. This is the finest and best preserved example of an elaborate helmet type represented on the celebrated Archaic masterpiece, The Armento Rider. Cast and hammered in bronze, with thickened nose guard and pointed cheek pieces, the rounded crown curving down into a flared neck piece. The elegant curvilinear eye holes taper to a point, decorated with a punched and incised border decoration that follows the outer edge of the helmet. The side cut outs adorned with lotus flowers, palmettes above. The bull horns, modelled in light relief, swoop over the brow with finely chased lotus flowers blooming from the ends. An incised motif sits above the nose guard between the brows, probably depicting a lotus bud. The sixth century B.C. was a time of continual technological and artistic improvement, with Greek armoursmiths spearheading the advance. Taken as trophies of war and dedicated to the Gods, Corinthian helmets recovered from the Sanctuary of Zeus in Olympia have provided invaluable evidence to their development and design. In the first stage, the helmet, often made from two sheets of metal welded together, was characterised by a short nose guard and a rigid, upright bell shape with straight sides. By the sixth century B.C. however, decades of battle experience had resulted in further shaping of the helmet to suit the wearer’s skull. The second phase helmet, to which the present piece belongs, is identified by the elongated neck guard and curvilinear forms. Metallurgical advancements also meant that the Corinthian helmet was now cast or hammered from one sheet of metal, which further resulted in the thickened nose guard extant in our example. Artistically, a phase two Corinthian helmet was the bronzesmith’s canvas. Specifically characterised by greater ornamentation, many phase two helmets also share the archetypal decorative element of the bull horns, which originate from the narrowest point of the nose guard and follow the line of the eye cut outs to the edge of the brow. Bull horns were a clear choice for decoration. In many ancient societies, bulls were recognised for their strength and virility, and were widely associated with mythological and supernatural figures. In wearing a helmet that bore large proud horns, the warrior cast himself as the formidable creature, and undoubtedly struck fear into the hearts of his enemies. The bull horns blossoming effortlessly into a lotus flower, however, is a particularly distinctive design type of the phase two Corinthian helmet. Remarkably, this very helmet type is known from ‘one of the first and most powerful sculptural productions’ of Greater Greece (Magna Graecia), The British Museum’s Armento Rider. It is likely that helmets such as this were worn by members of the south Italian aristocracy. Only three extant versions preserving this type of ornamentation are known, of which ours is the finest and most complete. The two others are: a helmet fragment in the collection of the Museo Archeologico in Bari, found in Canosa, Italy and a helmet in the collection of the Musées Royaux d’Art et d’Histoire in Brussels, identified by The British Museum as a find from the ancient Egyptian port of Naukratis. The Corinthian helmet invoked an ancient and revered military ideal that reverberated around the Classical world. Later, it would be revived by the Roman army, as a unique privilege of the officer class. After two millennia, the Corinthian helmet - named for posterity by the Father of History himself, Herodotus - is an enduring and iconic symbol for ancient Greek culture and the philosophical, intellectual and artistic foundations it established. Provenance: From the collection of Axel Guttmann (1944-2001), Berlin (Inv. no. AG564, H202). Subsequently, The Art of Warfare: The Axel Guttmann Collection, Part 1, Christie’s, London, 6 November 2002, Lot 46. Published: Hixenbaugh, R. Ancient Greek Helmets: A Complete Guide and Catalog, New York, 2019, p.390, Cat. No. C382.

Dimensions:
Height: 8.5 in (21.59 cm)Width: 8 in (20.32 cm)Depth: 11.5 in (29.21 cm)
Style:
Classical Greek (Of the Period)
Materials and Techniques:
Bronze
Place of Origin:
Europe
Period:
15th Century and Earlier
Date of Manufacture:
Archaic Period, circa 550-500 BC
Condition:
Repaired. Wear consistent with age and use.
Seller Location:
London, GB
Reference Number:
1stDibs: LU1052238091322

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