The Armour Archive

Roman jewelled ridge helmet, first twenty years of the 4th century CE, iron, gilded silver leaf, glass, gems. From the "Berkasovo treasure", Muzej Vojvodine, Novi Sad (Serbia). On display at temporary exhibition in the Colosseum (aug 2013), Rome, Italy.

The two most significant items, the magnificent gilded helmets were brought to the Museum of Vojvodina back in 1955 from Berkasovo village in Srem, near Šid. They were found by a woman, while ploughing the field she owned. The excavation by a sondage showed that these helmets were part of a hoard, along with two silver belt-shackles, a pipe from silver tinplate, a silver loop for straps, several iron fragments and gilded silver tinplate. The helmets are made from wrought-iron, coated with thin silver gilded tinplate and presumably they had a leather foundation. The more magnificent one of the two helmets is additionally ornamented with imitated emerald precious stones, onyx and chalcedony semi-precious stones, manufactured in glass paste, placed into foundations of various shapes. Particularly significant are inscriptions in Greek and Latin, explanations for which are many.