Close helmet: HEN.M.57-1933

Maker(s)

Production: Unknown

Entities

• Close helmet

Categories

• Armour

Description

Close helmet, for heavy cavalry use, composed of elements of a similar period and fashion. Formed of a rounded, one-piece skull with a 'bellows' visor and bevor attached to it by common pivots, and a neck-defence of three lames. The skull has a low, roped, medial comb that is pierced with a hole at its apex and bordered to either side by a pair of incised lines. Pairs of incised lines also separate the 'strands' of the roping. The front edge of the skull is cut away to form a broad, arched, face-opening that dips very slightly at its centre and is stepped to either side of the brow. The face-opening is bordered by nine, mostly modern, externally-flush lining-rivets that retain fragments of a leather lining band at either side. Part of the band on the left side may be original. Seven modern, round-headed lining-rivets with octagonal internal washers run round the rear of the skull at the height of the nape and retain a modern leather lining-band. The lower edge of the skull is flanged outwards at the rear to receive the neck-defence. The flange has a concave edge which is cracked to either side of the nape. The rear of the skull is pierced at either side with pairs of lace-holes located, respectively, near the top, just below the height of the pivot and at the side of the neck. A flat, vertical spring-strip is attached by an externally-flush rivet at its upper end within the right of the neck. Riveted to the front and rear corners, respectively, of the expanded lower end of the spring, and protruding through holes in the skull, are a plain stud which engages a hole in the rear edge of the bevor, and a flat-headed push-button to release the former. Each side of the skull is pierced to receive the modern pivots that attach the visor and the bevor. The pivots consist of bolts with plain, square, internal heads, secured by conical nuts cut with a pair of opposing rectangular notches and radiating lines. The left pivot-nut may be an old one, while the right one is certainly modern. The visor is of strongly accentuated 'bellows' form with four steps beneath the centrally-divided vision-slit, separated by pairs of incised lines which also border the upper edge of the vision-slit. The upper surfaces of the second and third steps are each pierced with four horizontal ventilation-slots, while the fourth step is pierced with two such slots. The upper edge of the visor rises slightly towards its centre, while the lower edge is concave at the sides, changing to convex at the front. Its arms have rounded ends. A modern lifting-peg, changing from a square section proximally to an octagonal section distally where it terminates in a baluster, is riveted at the right of the visor, just to the rear of the 'bellows'. The bevor is strongly shaped to the chin. Its front is cut away to form a deep, u-shaped face-opening, rising to a central cusp. The lower edge of the bevor is flanged outwards to form a front neck-defence, and has a file-roped, inward turn. The rear-edge, at the right of the neck, is pierced with a circular hole to engage the spring-catch on the skull. Each side of the neck is pierced with a possibly later rivet-hole, perhaps for a strap that fastened around the rear of the neck. The broad neck-defence is formed of three downward-overlapping lames, of which the third is considerably deeper than the other two and pierced at the centre of its lower edge with a pair of lace-holes. The lower edge is square with rounded corners. It has an inward turn, file-roped with pairs of incised lines. The lames are connected to the skull and to one another at their outer ends by modern round-headed rivets with octagonal internal washers.

Notes

History note: Mr James Stewart Henderson of 'Abbotsford', Downs Road, St Helen's Park, Hastings, Sussex.

Legal notes

J.S. Henderson Bequest

Place(s) associated

• Nuremburg ⪼ Germany

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bequeathed (1933-03-16) by Henderson, James Stewart

Dating

16th Century, Early#
Circa 1520 - 1530

Note

South German, partly Nuremberg

The helmet is bright with some light to medium patination, especially on the skull.

The visor sits poorly on both the skull and bevor and is clearly associated with them. The roping on the bevor does not match that of the comb of the skull suggesting that the bevor and the skull may also be associated with one another. The roping on the neck-defence does not match that of the bevor. Since the neck-defence fits the skull poorly, despite some reworking, it is clear that it is associated with the skull and also the bevor.

This helmet completely encloses the head giving all-round protection. It consists of a skull covering the rear of the head with three small plates to protect the back of the neck, a distinctive ‘bellows’ visor, covering the top of the face and a bevor, covering the lower face. The visor has eye slits and ventilation holes cut into it. Although all the parts are of the same date it is clear that they were not made for each other originally as they do not quite fit together properly.