Roman Helmets

[Guest benj]

im just wondering if anyone could tell me why roman helmets or infact any acent helmets have these brush type objects placed upon them?

 

 

 

any reply would be helpful

[Scaevola]

Hail benj!

 

Here are a few reasons for helment crests in brief:

 

1) Conical, or more pointed, helms deflected blows to the head better than rounded helms. They were also much easier to produce (very important when everything is done by hand). You see them more in the eastern armies, but that style of helm just called out for ornaments on top.

 

2) The more rounded style like the Romans used eventually adopted brow and neck pieces to provide better protection. With the way these braces were done internally and externally, it became easy for a crest to be put on the helment. This ribbing helped with deflection and made the helment stronger and lighter than the conical ones, and gave a good platform for decoration.

 

3) Those decorations could be unified into a system so that you can just glance and tell the rank of the person wearing the helm.

 

4) And what the heck, why not be vain? The "waving plumes" of a sea of enemies looks cool and could help scare the heck out of opponents.

 

Nice to see you here Benj, come back often.

[Maximus]

In my opinion, the crest is placed on Officers helmets so that while in battle, the legionnary could identify who was who.

[Lacertus]

I agree with Maximus. "Brushes" were a sings to diffier centuriones and other officers and arm branchers.

[Spurius]

So that's three votes for point three that Scaevola brought up.

That works for the romans.

 

What about everyone else? I know the greeks, with the exception of Sparta, weren't that organized.