Late Roman ridge helmet
Encyclopedia
The Late Roman ridge helmet was a combat helmet of the Late Antiquity
used in the Late Roman army
.
In contrast to earlier single-bowl designed helmets, the ridge helmet was made of two separate pieces joined by a riveted ridge in the middle. It is typically made of iron and has often a nasal, cheek guards and a neck guard. Many are decorated expensively in the form of silver or silver-gilt sheathing.
Late Roman ridge helmets are depicted for the first time on coins of Constantine the Great and were used until the 4th century. One specimen has been found outside the Roman empire in Conceşti on Hunnic
territory. It was also one of the last helmets of this type.
Three subtypes of Late Roman rigde helmets can be distinguished:
A closely related special form is a single helmet from Dura Europos which is similar to Roman ridge helmets, but has a much higher calotte
. It probably belonged to a Sassanid warrior of the 3rd century.
Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity is a periodization used by historians to describe the time of transition from Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages, in both mainland Europe and the Mediterranean world. Precise boundaries for the period are a matter of debate, but noted historian of the period Peter Brown proposed...
used in the Late Roman army
Late Roman army
The Late Roman army is the term used to denote the military forces of the Roman Empire from the accession of Emperor Diocletian in 284 until the Empire's definitive division into Eastern and Western halves in 395. A few decades afterwards, the Western army disintegrated as the Western empire...
.
In contrast to earlier single-bowl designed helmets, the ridge helmet was made of two separate pieces joined by a riveted ridge in the middle. It is typically made of iron and has often a nasal, cheek guards and a neck guard. Many are decorated expensively in the form of silver or silver-gilt sheathing.
Late Roman ridge helmets are depicted for the first time on coins of Constantine the Great and were used until the 4th century. One specimen has been found outside the Roman empire in Conceşti on Hunnic
Huns
The Huns were a group of nomadic people who, appearing from east of the Volga River, migrated into Europe c. AD 370 and established the vast Hunnic Empire there. Since de Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China 300 years prior to the emergence of the Huns,...
territory. It was also one of the last helmets of this type.
Three subtypes of Late Roman rigde helmets can be distinguished:
- Type Dunapentele/Intercisa
- Type Berkasovo
- Type Augsburg
A closely related special form is a single helmet from Dura Europos which is similar to Roman ridge helmets, but has a much higher calotte
Zucchetto
The zucchetto , a/k/a pileolus in Latin and calotte/calotta in France, Italy and Hispanic nations, is a small skullcap worn by clerics of the Roman Catholic Church, as well as in Anglicanism....
. It probably belonged to a Sassanid warrior of the 3rd century.
Literature
- Mahand Vogt: Spangenhelme. Baldenheim und verwandte Typen. Monographien des Römisch-Germanischen Zentralmuseums 39. Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum, Schnell & Steiner, Regensburg 2007. ISBN 978-3-7954-2006-2.
- Simon MacDowall und Christa Hook: Late Roman Cavalryman AD 236-565. ISBN 1855325675
- Peter Wilcox und Angus McBride: Rome's Enemies 3: Parthians and Sassanid Persians. ISBN 0850456886
- John Warry: Warfare in the Classical World: An Illustrated Encyclopedia of Weapons, Warriors, and Warfare in the Ancient Civilisations of Greece and Rome. ISBN 0806127945