The Crosby-Garrett Helmet is one such artifact that has captivated the world with its mysterious beauty and interesting history. It had no combat purpose and, according to scientists, was used for various ceremonies. In the fall of 2010, this item was sold at a Christie's auction for 2.3 million pounds ($3.6 million) to an anonymous buyer.
The ammunition was discovered in May 2010 by Andrew Nicholson in a field near the English village of Crosby-Garrett. During its stay in the earth, the helmet was destroyed and at the time of its stay it consisted of 67 different fragments.
Source: christies.com
Experts hired by Christie's auction house were involved in the restoration of the artifact. After quite a long period of work, they managed to completely restore the find. However, the restoration procedure was carried out before the helmet was examined at the British Museum. And this, according to the researchers, influenced the fact that important information about the origin of the helmet could be lost.
The design of the restored helmet is an extraordinary combination of functionality and aesthetics. It repeated the structure of the ceremonial armor of the Roman cavalry, which was used during tournaments.
Source: christies.com
However, this helmet was distinguished by a complex ornament. The obverse part depicted the face of a young man with curly hair, on whose head was a Phrygian cap. The upper part contains a winged sphinx, which is unusual for such helmets. According to researchers, the mask and helmet were a kind of personification of the god Mithras, who was popular among ancient Roman soldiers of the 1st-4th centuries. N. is.
One of the mysterious aspects of the helmet is its purpose. Unlike most Roman helmets, which were usually mass-produced and functional, the Crosby-Garrett helmet appears to have been crafted with great attention to detail. This has led scholars to speculate that it may have been a ceremonial or ceremonial helmet rather than a helmet intended for actual combat. This hypothesis raises questions about the identity of the person who might have worn it and the context in which it was used.
Source: christies.com
After being sold at auction in 2010, the Tully Museum in Carlisle launched a fundraising campaign to buy the helmet and put it on display in the county where it was found. One patron announced that he was ready to make a substantial donation.
However, the collected amount was still not enough to buy this object from a private collector. Despite this, the museum continued to try to negotiate with the buyer, offering to place the helmet in the museum's exhibition, at least on a temporary basis.
Source: finds.org.uk
