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+--- Thread: Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets (/showthread.php?tid=22767)
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Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Olaf - 06-19-2013
Since I am currently researching the arms and armour of the late Republican and early Augustan Gladiator.
From iconography it is clear that contemporary military helmets of the ethnic Armatura were used, so we have the Gallic A helmet for the early Provocator, Agen-Port helmet for the Essedarius, Hellenistic Boetian helmet for the Equites, Hellenistic Phrygian helmet for the Thraex and Hellenistic Macedonian helmet for the Hoplomachus.
The Murmillo Armatura seems to have started the trend to the more elaborate brimmed helmet with cheek pieces, that later developed into the iconic visored Chieti and Pompeji styles.
Since the three surviving examples of this type are on display in museums in the USA, I hope some of our fellows overseas might be able to provide reference pictures for these three helmets.
I have collected some pictures posted on Flickr, and found a lot of pictures of the helmet displayed at the Higgins Armory Museum, Worcester, but only very few of the other two helmets in question.
Higgins Armory Museum, Worcester, MA:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/40060535@N05/galleries/72157622918570600/
Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto and Art Center, Detroit, MI
http://www.flickr.com/photos/40060535@N05/galleries/72157627135933227/
Any additional pictures would be very welcome.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - PhilusEstilius - 06-19-2013
Olaf.
I think these ones came from Pompeii.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - richard robinson - 06-19-2013
Good luck questing Olaf. I too only found those two helmets. I believe that the third is in Detroit but was unable to track an online image of it. It would be brilliant if our American friends could source a foto
regards
Richard Robinson
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Olaf - 06-19-2013
Brian, the helmets from Pompeii are well documented, but these are the helmets worn after the Augustan reforms. I am searching for the three examples that are predecessors of the visored helmet types, from the time when Gladiators were still fighting open faced with only cheek pieces attached to the helmet. These helmets would have been worn in Spartacus time until replaced by the Chieti type somewhere before 50AD.
The three known examples, that you can see in the Flickr pictures above are all displayed in America, so I was hoping somebody from Toronto, Detroit or Worcester Massachusetts might help out and get us some pictures of these. Especially the Detroit specimen seems to be quite elusive.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - john m roberts - 06-20-2013
Olaf,
Have you written the museums? About 30 years ago I did and while the Higgins Armory replied that they had no photos of their helmet available, Detroit sent a single, large photo that looked newly printed from a negative from, probably, the 30s. ROM send a whole series of large black-and-white photos taken from every possible angle. I have them around someplace but they will take a long time to find. You might just contact the museums directly.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Olaf - 06-20-2013
I will try contacting the museums next, though I have the experience from European museums that it is quite difficult to get a reply of you ask for something like this without giving a scholarly background.
Should the pictures you have pop up sometime I would be thankful for any scans..
Still pictures from residents, if taking pictures is all owed at these museums would also be very much appreciated.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - richard robinson - 06-24-2013
searched the detroit gallery online but it is apparently not there -on photos...
found this- but it is only a detail on what u already have
http://www.livescience.com/19728-photos-gladiators-roman-empire.html
regards from australia
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Medusa Gladiatrix - 06-24-2013
The Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe in Hamburg disposes of a helmet dating 1st century BC which resembles a bit the helmet of Richard's link. It has the inventory no. 1917/173 and is shown on page 44 of the catalog "Gladiatoren und Caesaren - Die Macht der Unterhaltung im antiken Rom".
I just visited recently the newly reopened collection of antiquities but unfortunately this helmet is not on display :-(
I wish you good luck contacting them.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Olaf - 06-24-2013
Hi Svenja, thanks for the hint, but if you refer to the helmet pictured here:
http://books.google.de/books?id=5pzs975hnpoC&pg=PA36 which is also in the Junkelmann publication, it does not have a secure providence and might as well be a Roman military helmet of Boetian type.
If it is a Gladiatorial helmet i agree with Junkelmann in attributing it to the Eques Armatura on account of this relief of two Eques: http://www.flickr.com/photos/40060535@N05/galleries/72157623093765400/#photo_713120568
I am more interested in the three specimens from overseas however as the Detroit helmet resembles the one shown in an early 1st AD Relief which is the only known depiction of a Murmillo vs. Retiarius pairing. (junkemann 2008, Pic. 349)
@Richard, thank you for this good find and detailed picture..
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - richard robinson - 06-25-2013
have you noted that the hellenistic cavalry helmet could easily have also been an early gladiator helmet?
regards
Richard
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Medusa Gladiatrix - 06-25-2013
Quote:Hi Svenja, thanks for the hint, but if you refer to the helmet pictured here:
http://books.google.de/books?id=5pzs975hnpoC&pg=PA36 which is also in the Junkelmann publication, it does not have a secure providence and might as well be a Roman military helmet of Boetian type.
Yes, that is the helmet which I was talking about. I just wonder if there was in the Republican era a difference between gladiator helmets and military helmets at all since at that time gladiatorial helmets have not had the visor yet but also only cheek guards like military helmets.
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Olaf - 06-26-2013
Like I wrote in the initial post; according to iconography I agree that military helmets were used for most Armaturae up until the early Augustan period.
We often see the Thracian/Phrygian helmet worn by the Thraex, the Hoplomachus is shown with the hellenistic attic helmet,,the Eques wear Boetian helmets, the Provocators Imperial Gallic As/Weissenaus and the Essedarii (Galli?) wear Port type B.
The three helmets I refer to however are somewhat exceptional, as these are clearly of a precursor type to the later Chieti type Gladiator helmets. I am not an expert on helmets in the military iconography in the late Republican/early Augustan period, nut I have never seen anything like these in a military context,
We do see these in a Gladiatorial context however, and Junkelmann also classifies these type of helmet as only Gladiatorial in his chart showing the evolution of Gladiatorial and military helmets.
Apart form the aforementioned relief showing the Murmillo/Retiarius fight such helmets are also shown on these two figurines of Parmularii: : http://www.flickr.com/photos/40060535@N05/galleries/72157622918629772/#photo_2513376129
I do wonder which helmets the Gladiators are wearing on the recovered Fiano Romano relkief:
http://xmb.stuffucanuse.com/xmb/image.php?&aid=1922&roman-gladiators.jpg
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - richard robinson - 06-28-2013
does anybody recognise this museum?
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Bn657kEYkno/TMhA_vXpOcI/AAAAAAAACAs/u-zbAAd9axg/s1600/cruiseone+791.JPG
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - richard robinson - 06-28-2013
this one is in naples?
http://www.globaleffects.com/C_pages/Rental/Wardrobe/Armor/Period/CompleteSuit/European/bank1_2_07_hi.jpg
which helmet do u think they based this on?
Searching for pictures of early Gladiator helmets - Olaf - 06-28-2013
The helmet in the first post is also from Pompeji, but it seems to be to big and to crude to be an actual combat helmet. Junkelmann considers it a parade helmet or maybe it belonged to a larger then live statue.
I saw it up close at the Colosseum exhibition where this picture was also taken and I would agree with Junkelmann.
The second seems to be a crude attempt at a reconstruction of one of the helmets I am referring to in this thread.
The whole combination of left shoulder guard, right Ocrea, round shield and so on looks quite like a badly researched TV Production to me.
A fourth helmet of this type, closely resembeling the Detroit example, seems to have been on display at the Museo di castel angelo in Rome before 1970. It is pictured in Junkelmann (2008 P.341)