Lamellar helmet from Niederstotzingen (reconstruction)

The lamellar helmet (

German language German ( ) is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in Central Europe. It is the most widely spoken and official or co-official language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, and the Italian province of South Tyrol. It is als ...

: ''Lamellenhelm'', plural ''Lamellenhelme'') was a type of helmet used in Europe during the

Early Middle Ages The Early Middle Ages (or early medieval period), sometimes controversially referred to as the Dark Ages, is typically regarded by historians as lasting from the late 5th or early 6th century to the 10th century. They marked the start of the Mi ...

. Examples are characterized by caps made from overlapping

lamellar A ''lamella'' (plural ''lamellae'') is a small plate or flake, from the Latin, and may also be used to refer to collections of fine sheets of material held adjacent to one another, in a gill-shaped structure, often with fluid in between though s ...

scales, in addition to a brow plate, cheek guards, and

camail An aventail () or camail () is a flexible curtain of mail attached to the skull of a helmet that extends to cover the throat, neck and shoulders. Part or all of the face, with spaces to allow vision, could also be covered. The earliest camail ...

. They are distinct from the contemporary spangenhelm and crested helmets also found in Europe; unlike those, which are influenced by Roman designs, ''Lamellenhelme'' display eastern influence and have primarily been found in southeastern Europe. They are mostly associated with the Avars of Pannonia and the

Lombards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the '' History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 an ...

of Italy.

Description

''Lamellenhelme'' are characterized by overlapping plates—a form of

lamellar armour Lamellar armour is a type of body armour, made from small rectangular plates (scales or ''lamellae'') of iron or steel, leather ( rawhide), or bronze laced into horizontal rows. Lamellar armour was used over a wide range of time periods in Centr ...

—with caps of conical shape and plumes at the top. They also tend to have brow plates, cheek pieces, and, like spangenhelme,

protecting the neck. The ''Lamellenhelm'' was one of three primary designs of helmets that proliferated throughout 6th- and 7th-century Europe; the others were the spangenhelm and the northern crested helmet. They are categorized by Heiko Steuer with 'other helmets of eastern origin,' and have been principally found in southeastern Europe. Unlike spangenhelme and the northern crested helmets, which likely derive from Roman helmet designs, the ''Lamellenhelm'' appears to have been used by and influenced by eastern European cultures, such as the Avars. ''Lamellenhelme'' also seem to have been used by the

, a

Germanic people The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and ear ...

who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. This is suggested both by the discovery of parts of such helmets in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, and by the discovery of a brow plate displaying the inscription VICTORIA D

MINO Mino may refer to: Places in Japan * Mino, Gifu, a city in Gifu Prefecture * Mino, Kagawa, a former town in Kagawa Prefecture * Mino, Tokushima, a town in Tokushima Prefecture * Mino, an alternate spelling of Minoh, a city in Osaka Prefecture * Mi ...

N STROAGILUL OREGI, ("Victory to our lord, king Agiluf") which names

Agilulf Agilulf ( 555 – April 616), called ''the Thuringian'' and nicknamed ''Ago'', was a duke of Turin and king of the Lombards from 591 until his death. A relative of his predecessor Authari, Agilulf was of Thuringian origin and belonged to the A ...

, a Lombard king who ruled from 591 to 616. The plate also contains a figural scene showing the seated king and, on his left and right, warriors who themselves are wearing comparable plumed helmets. The plate was once part of a helmet that was likely owned by a high-ranking follower of the king.

Lamellar helmets in Central Asia

Lamellar helmets were popularized in Central Asia by the steppe nomads. Knights wearing dome-shaped lamellar helmets with cup-shaped finials, and armed with swords with

Hunnish The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th century AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was part ...

cloisonné designs, can be seen in the " Cave of the Painters" at the

Kizil Caves The Kizil Caves ( zh, t=克孜爾千佛洞, s=克孜尔千佛洞, l=Kizil Caves of the Thousand Buddhas; ug, قىزىل مىڭ ئۆي, translation=The Thousand Red Houses; also romanized Qizil Caves, spelling variant Qyzyl; Kizil means 'red') ar ...

, and are dated to the 5th century CE. Lamellar helmets were adopted by the Sasanian Empire when they took control of former Hephthalite territory. This type of helmet appears in sculptures on pillar capitals at Ṭāq-e Bostān and Behistun, and on the Anahita coinage of Khosrow II (r. 590-628 CE). File:Lamellenhelm Rek.jpg, A print of a lamellar helmet File:Lamina di re agilulfo.JPG, alt=Colour photograph of the Agiluf helmet plate, showing a flat rectangular plate with two semicircular cutouts eyeholes at the bottom, and a scene with four people on each side of a seated king, The Agiluf helmet plate File:Helmets in the Cave of the Painters.jpg, Helmets in the " Cave of the Painters", 5th century CE

References

Bibliography

* * {{helmets Medieval helmets Combat helmets Migration Period

Description

Lamellar helmets in Central Asia

See also

References

Bibliography