When found, the helmet was in several pieces. In particular, the neck flange and cheek guards had broken away and were found inside the helmet, although they were in the correct relative positions. The helmet crest holder was found after the helmet has been recovered.
The helmet body was hammered out of a single sheet of metal, and the neck guard was angled at about 42-45 deg. The guard has a distinct concave shape.
With the exception of the iron hinges of the cheek guards, the entire helmet was made in bronze/copper alloy.
The helmet crest holder was made of a single lump of bronze, which had formerly been soldered to the top of the helmet. The slot for the plume/crest was arranged transversely. There were further reinforcing points for holding the crest at the front and rear of the helmet.
The 'eyebrow' ornamentation on the front of the helmet appears to have been provided by a separate sheet of bronze, of which only fragments remain.
The front of the helmet was protected by a brow-band. The ends of this were flattened longitudinally and were then riveted to the helmet bowl. These rivets were shared with the ear protectors, although the latter have not survived.
The rear of the helmet bowl had three raised ribs.
The neck protection had two raised steps, that curved foreward to meet the bowl of the helmet. Beneath the rear of the helmet there was a bronze carrying handle.
The cheek guards have a bronze ring riveted at the bottom, which would have carried the tie laces. The guards are decorated all round with a raised, double banded feature. These guards are rather more angular than is normally the case and have been said to more closely resemble those seen on the older 'Agen-Port' types.
The excavators appeared to have some difficulty in assigning the helmet type (despite the fact that the helmet is made of a copper alloy, which would indicate a Type I), suggesting that it may lie between IG Types I and J, having some features of both. They also note that the crest holder resembles those found on a Coolus, Type 'G'!
Photos, courtesy of Adrian Wink.
References:
Kocsis, L. (1983), "Ein neugefundener römischer Helm aus dem Legionslager von Aquincum", in Studien zu den Militärgrenzen Roms, III, (3rd International Limescongress), pp.350-4
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