A magnificent 2,000 year-old silver-gilt Roman helmet of outstanding quality and international importance was unveiled today in England.
Archaeologists who made the original discovery at Hallaton in Leicestershire, used to finding more glamorous gold and silver coins, joked they had found a fairly modern “rusty bucket”. However, their discovery turned out to be a hugely significant archaeological find.
The “Hallaton Helmet” was found ten years ago by members of the Hallaton Fieldwork Group and professional archaeologists from University of Leicester Archaeological Services who were excavating the remains of a 2,000-year-old Iron Age shrine.
The site appears to be a major religious centre, having produced the largest number of Iron Age coins ever excavated in Britain and possible evidence of ritual feasting dating to the mid 1st Century AD. The finds from this site would later become known as the Hallaton Treasure.
It is the only Roman helmet found in Britain with the majority of the silver-gilt plating surviving, and one of only a handful ever discovered. It is also one of Britain’s earliest Roman helmets.
When fragments of iron were taken back to the University of Leicester, during excavation in 2001, it was realised that they had the “ear” from a 2,000 year old Roman cavalry helmet. This distinctive iron object with silver plating was the ear guard of a once magnificent helmet.
The fragile helmet had to be lifted in a soil block for excavation and conservation in the Department of Conservation and Scientific Research at the British Museum. Over the next few years the finds from Hallaton were declared Treasure and were acquired by Leicestershire County Council with the help of grants from The Heritage Lottery Fund, The Art Fund, the Museums and Art Galleries Improvements Fund, the V&A Purchase Grant Fund, The Headley Trust, Renaissance East Midlands and local contributions from the Friends of Leicester and Leicestershire Museums, the Leicestershire Museums Archaeological Fieldwork Group, as well as private individuals. The Heritage Lottery Fund grant of £650,600 enabled the finds, including the helmet, to be conserved and displayed to the public in the specially designed Hallaton Treasure Gallery at Harborough Museum in Market Harborough, Leicestershire.
The task of removing the helmet from its soil block fell to Marilyn Hockey, Head of Ceramics, Glass and Metals Conservation at the British Museum. This group, based within the Department of Conservation and Scientific Research, has a strong focus on archaeological conservation, with experienced conservators working alongside science specialists.
The initial laboratory excavation, carried out as part of the BM’s duties under the Treasure Act, revealed a much more complex assemblage than had been expected, as the helmet had been buried with several hundred coins, the remains of a feast of suckling pig, and five extra cheekpieces (making seven in all). All of the metalwork was in a broken and fragile state, including the decorated silver surface, much of which had corroded away to powder; but under the microscope a very fine design and traces of gilding could be seen.
Once Leicestershire County Council had raised the funding, a three year collaboration with the BM began, during which Marilyn, later assisted by two colleagues, carried out a campaign of painstaking micro-excavation, stabilisation and reconstruction of the hundreds of fragments. This work is now complete and according to Marilyn and her colleagues, was one of the most challenging and rewarding projects they have worked on. This process, likened to a 3D jigsaw puzzle, has revealed the helmet to be constructed of sheet iron, once covered with beautifully crafted silver sheet decorated in places with gold leaf. It was probably made between AD 25-50 so is contemporary with the Roman invasion of Britain.
Marilyn Hockey commented, “This was one of the most challenging and rewarding projects of my career. It has been a long job, and I have come to know this object intimately! But I have felt enormously privileged to have had the chance to work on such a unique and fascinating piece of our history. It’s wonderful to be able to coax something like this out of the soil and to allow it to show itself off again.”
This was a top quality helmet and would have been specially commissioned by a high ranking officer. When new, it would have been a stunning sight, shining gold and silver and with images of Roman military victory proudly displayed on its surfaces. It is the only Roman helmet found in Britain with the majority of the silver-gilt plating surviving, and one of only a handful ever discovered.
The decoration is of the highest quality. The helmet’s bowl features a wreath, the symbol of a military victory and the scallop shaped browguard shows the striking bust of a woman flanked by lions and other animals. The cheekpieces depict a Roman emperor on horseback with the goddess Victory flying behind. Beneath his horse’s hooves is a cowering figure, possibly a native Briton.
What the native Britons who buried this helmet made of this image of Roman dominance we do not know. Did they identify with the defeated foe or the triumphant horseman? One persuasive theory is that it was actually owned by an important local man who had served in the Roman cavalry prior to or during the Roman conquest of Britain that began in AD 43. He may have chosen to bury his highly prized helmet at his local shrine as a gift to the gods on his return to the East Midlands.
Alternatively, it is possible that the helmet was a diplomatic gift, perhaps suggesting that the local population were pro-Roman. Some believe that the helmet was not a gift but a spoil of war. It may have been taken during a raid on a Roman camp or even during a battle.
The Hallaton Helmet is one of the earliest Roman helmets found in Britain and is believed to have been buried in the years around the Roman Emperor Claudius’ invasion of Britain in AD 43. The circumstances of its burial are a mystery and how this extremely high status Roman object came into the possession of the local native British tribe is intriguing. The Hallaton Helmet has been baffling experts in Roman archaeology and history since it was discovered and may continue to do so for some time to come.
David Sprason, Leicestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Adults and Communities, said: “The unveiling of this thrilling discovery is a tremendously exciting event. That we have reached this stage is thanks to the successful partnership between the County Council, world class experts at the British Museum, the dedicated archaeologists involved and our generous funding organisations.”
The Hallaton Helmet will be displayed permanently at Harborough Museum, Market Harborough, Leicestershire from Saturday, January 28th 2012 alongside the other finds from the Hallaton Treasure.
Source: Leicestershire County Council, British Museum
