Archeurope: Early Medieval Archaeology

Helmets from the Vendel Period

(click on the images below to enlarge them)

Helmet from    Vendel Grave XIV		Helmet from   Vendel Grave XIV
Helmet from   Vendel Grave I		Helmet from   Valsgärde

The helmets from the Vendel period are perhaps the most impressive grave goods from these burials. Greta Arwidsson traces their origin to the late Roman period:

 

"The helmets which are part of the epoch’s most splendid equipment have long been called Vendel helmets as a type. It seems certain that they must be Nordic work but it would be interesting to know where and when the type, originating perhaps in Roman gladiatorial helmets, appeared in the north. It is possible to see on the Vendel helmets details which are found on the late Roman crested helmets: for example, the termination of the crest with an eagle’s head, or with both eagles’ and boars’ heads and which may also be combined with pictures of dragons. The helmets with a markedly low crest, adorned with embossed silver foil and set with rivets with decorated domed heads, make other comparisons possible."

 

("Valsgärde", Greta Arwidsson in "Vendel Period Studies", (ed) J.P. Lamm & H.Å Nordström,
Statens Historiska Museum, Stockholm 1983, p. 77)

 Next page: Vendel Helmets Page 2

 

 

---