Hallaton Helmet

The Hallaton Helmet is a Hallaton in Leicestershire in the UK in 2000 found Roman cavalry parade helmet.

Locality

The site in Hallaton seems to be the site of a sanctuary from the pre-Roman times to be on which large scale animals were sacrificed. Of the bones found over 7000, 97% of pig bones. The sacrificial animals were apparently dedicated to a deity as a whole. At the top of the hill to the sanctuary, which was surrounded by palisade and ditch, probably led a procession road. In Roman times, the hill was located in the territory of Corieltauvi.

Fund and restoration history

The occurrence of the Hallaton helmet was identified from a private treasure hunters with its probe in 2000. His discovery he reported to the competent authorities, which then began in 2003 with scientific excavations. The helmet was together with over five thousand coins found. The hoard also contained the oldest found to date in the former Kingdom Roman coin from the year 211 BC. To restoration in the British Museum in London, the helmet was surrounded by gypsum recovered as lumps.

The treasure hunters the payment of the value of the find according to the applicable Fund right after the Treasure Act, in the amount of £ 300,000 sterling had to share with the landowners. The total cost, including the restoration and preservation of the helmet in the British Museum in the amount of £ 1 million sterling were applied mainly of Leicestershire by lottery funds and other donations. Since January 2012, is the helmet, which had to be composed of thousands of individual parts again in the British Museum, exhibited at Harborough Museum in Market Harborough in Leicestershire, along with other finds.

Description of the helmet

The Hallaton Helmet is a three-part Roman cavalry helmet as worn by the auxiliary troops of cavalry in parades, the hippica gymnasia. In these games, riders and horses were richly equipped with clothing and other items such as armor and feathers. The riders showed their skills and thereby presented among other scenes from the Trojan War after.

Still found most of the silver and gold version to the Hallaton helmet from relatively thin iron. Originally attached to the helmet cheek pieces have not survived, but several individual cheek flaps were found at the site. The helmet is characterized by a pronounced brow guard and an elongated neck protection.

The ornaments which resemble the helmet on the rider helmet found in Xanten - Wardt. The helmet is decorated with laurel branches. In the middle of the forehead is a protection, today heavily damaged goddess flanked by two lions. The cheek pieces found were richly decorated. A shows a triumphant Roman emperor, who rides away with his horse and with outstretched arm on a barbarian as he is crowned by Victoria. Another cheeks flap shows a figure with a large cornucopia, including a Roman helmet and a shield.

Interpretation of the find

The discovery of this Roman pomp helmet at a local sanctuary is very unusual. The helmet was probably made between 25 and 50 AD, ie around the time of the conquest of Britain by the Romans in 43 AD. So far, there are several theories about why the helmet came into the sanctuary. One says that the owner was a Briton who served in the Roman cavalry. Another conjecture is that the helmet was a diplomatic gift from the Romans. The fact that the helmet is a piece of loot from a battle might have been, is excluded because it is too thin in battle as protection and embellishments are too costly.