Greek Helmet

of Corinthian type, with rounded dome slightly offset, flaring neck protector, pointed cheek-guards, broad nose-guard, and almond-shaped eyes, the long stylized tapering eyebrows in relief, a narrow border of finely striated diagonal lines around the eyes, nose-guard, and cheek-guards, the incised ornament around the forehead and on the temples, faint in places, including a pair of serpents, four lotus flowers outlined by a herringbone pattern, and hatched zigzags, the two holes above the eyebrows probably for the attachment of a plume or plumes.

Mathias Komor, New York
Howard and Saretta Barnet, New York, acquired from the above on November 1, 1973

As shown and described, please note damages and dents, visible in the catalogue illustrations. Part of the neck guard and lower part of the cheek guard on the proper left side are broken away. There is other very minor damage to the edge of the neck guard. Three areas on the back of the head with holes and tears; dents visible on the forehead and crown.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This helmet is of the "Corinthian" type, and formed a standard part of the late Archaic hoplite's set of armor, together with his cuirass (breastplate), greaves (shin guards), shield, spear, and javelins. The present example belongs to a specific group of Italic Corinthian helmets from Apulia, all dated to the first half of the 6th Century BC. Their distinctive features are a wide nose-guard, broad neck-guard, and elegant eyebrows in relief extending back over the temples or curving up over the forehead. The group is best represented by helmets in Karlsruhe and Bari; see Herrmann Pflug in Bottini et al., Antike Helme. Sammlung Lipperheide und andere Bestände des Antikenmuseums Berlin, Mainz, 1988, pp. 82f., figs. 19ff. Other related examples are in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (inv. no. 55.11.10), the British Museum, London (inv. no. GR,1865.7-22), and the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (inv. no. 48.498.1).

These helmets are the forerunners of the late and most developed form of the Corinthian helmet type, an example of which was sold at Sotheby’s, London, November 29, 2017, lot 5.