Page:A record of European armour and arms through seven centuries (Volume 1).djvu/119

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  • laus, who died in the year 935 (Fig. 55, a, b). We have never had the

opportunity of examining the helmet, but the authorities were kind enough to forward us a photograph, which is here reproduced. It is possible that the helmet might be of the Xth century, for upon the nasal-guard, and the border that encircles the lower edge of the skull-piece, a runic design is plated in silver, strongly reminiscent of the ornament seen on the decorated hilts of the so-called Viking swords of the IXth and Xth centuries. It is engraved in the Baron von Suttner's work Der Helm vom selben Ursprunge, Vienna, 1878.

The third helmet is of iron, now in the Imperial Armoury, Vienna (Fig. 56). It is forged out of one piece, inclusive of its short nasal-guard. This helmet was found in a tomb at Mähren, Austria. It probably dates from the XIth century.

The fourth helmet is of iron, and is also in the Imperial Armoury at Vienna (Fig. 57). It is forged from one piece. The nasal-guard is longer than in the preceding helmet, and finishes in a slight upward twist. It was found near Olmütz. It probably dates from the XIth century.

The fifth helmet is of iron, now in the collection of Count Hans Wilczek, Schloss Kreuzenstein, near Vienna (Fig. 58). It is much like the last two described, and is forged from one piece, though the nasal-guard is somewhat wider. It was, like Fig. 56, found in a tomb at Mähren, Austria, and probably dates from the XIth century.

The sixth helmet is of iron, and is in the collection of Dr. Bashford Dean of New York (Fig. 59, a, b). It is differently constructed, and now stands 7-1/2 inches high, having lost its lower encircling band. It is composed of four sections, those of the front and back overlapping the side panels. The four joinings, in each case, being made by two rivets, having their heads in the interior. Each segment is 6-1/2 inches wide at its base. This helmet is said to have been found in the north of France. It is somewhat difficult to assign it an accurate date, as it has a slight Oriental influence in its form. It can probably be accepted as being of the XIIth or XIIIth century.

The seventh helmet, of iron and copper gilt, now in the Hermitage, Petrograd (Fig. 60), is the famous head-piece attributed to Henry the Lion, Duke of Brunswick (1154-1195). The helmet came to this armoury as part of the Basilewski Collection from Paris. In the sale catalogue of that famous collection it was described as Un heaume du XVI siècle. It is said formerly to have belonged to the collection of Freiherr zu Rhein, who acquired it, according to the Freiherr R. von Mansberg, by a legacy from