MAGNA GRAECIA, LATE ARCHAIC TO CLASSICAL PERIOD, CIRCA 525-475 B.C.

Details

A GREEK BRONZE APULO-CORINTHIAN HELMET
MAGNA GRAECIA, LATE ARCHAIC TO CLASSICAL PERIOD, CIRCA 525-475 B.C.
10 ¼ in. (26.1 cm.) high

Provenance

Axel Guttmann (1944-2001), Berlin, acquired in Paris, 1990 (Inv. no. AG463/H166).
Antiken der Sammlung Axel Guttman, Auktion 56, Hermann Historica, Munich, 8 October 2008, lot 44.
Acquired by the current owner from the above.

Literature

M. Burns, "Graeco-Italic Militaria," in M. Merrony, ed., Mougins Museum of Classical Art, Mougins, 2011, p. 214, fig. 94.
“Apulo-Corinthian Helmets,” (online article, sas.upenn.edu).

Exhibited

Musée d'Art Classique de Mougins, 2011-2023 (Inv. no. MMoCA183).

Conditions of sale

Brought to you by

Hannah Fox Solomon Head of Department, Specialist

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Lot Essay

This type is similar to the preceding example (lot 5) except that the eye-holes are now smaller, the nose guard is in relief, and the separation between the ends of the cheek-guards is a narrow cut-out with two bridges. This example likewise has a tall plume-holder riveted to the crown, and there is a pair of perforations on either side of the dome for additional plume attachments. The surface is lavishly engraved with a boar on each cheek-piece, a rosette below each brow, a central palmette above, and lotus buds extending outward from the eye-holes. A band of chevron extends along the perimeter edges.

This helmet is characteristic of A. Bottini's Type B, all of which feature open eyes, the nose in relief and the cheek-guards joined by one or more bridges (see "Gli Elmi Apulo-Corinzi: Proposta di Classificazione," AION: Annali di archeologia e storia antica, vol. 12, 1990, pp. 23-37). For a related example, see fig. 6, p. 113, in Bottini, et al. eds., Antike Helme.

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