Corinthian Helmet

Place of OriginGreece, reportedly from Paiania

Date500-450 BCE

Dimensions11 3/8 × 7 1/8 × 10 5/8 in. (28.9 × 18.1 × 27 cm)

MediumRaised bronze

ClassificationMetalwork

Credit LinePurchased with funds from the Anderton Bentley Fund

Object number

1993.46

On View

Toledo Museum of Art (2445 Monroe Street), Gallery, 02, Classic

Label TextThis is a Corinthian helmet, the most recognizable and successful type of armor from ancient Greece. Its elegant yet intimidating form provided near-total protection for a hoplite, or citizen-soldier, during the era of the Persian Wars. A helmet like this evokes one of history's most famous conflicts, the Battle of Marathon in 490 BCE. After its use in battle, such a helmet was often dedicated as a precious offering to the gods at a sanctuary. Its streamlined design became an icon of Greek military might and artistic achievement.Exhibition HistoryToledo Museum of Art; Tampa Museum of Art, The Fire of Hephaistos: Large Classical Bronzes from North American Collections, 1996-1997.

Comparative ReferencesSee also Snodgrass, A.E., Early Greek Armour and Weapons from the Bronze Age to 600 B.C., Edinburgh, 1964, pp. 219-221.

cf. Snodgreass, A.E., Arms and Armour of the Greeks, London, 1967, pp. 93-94.

cf. Jackson, A., "Some deliberate damage to Archaic Greek helmets dedicated at Olympia," Liverpool Classical Monthly, 8.2, Feb. 1983, pp. 22-27.

cf. Pflug, H. and D. Cahn, Schutz und Zier, Helme aus dem Antikenmuseum Berlin und Waffen anderer Sammlungen, Basel, Antiken Museum und Sammlungen Ludwig, 1989, pp. 20-22 and p. 58, cat. no. 21; p. 91, cat. no. 82a.