Bronze helmet with two winged youths on each side who flank and grasp a pair of entwined serpents. They are dressed in short kilts, wear winged sandals and have wings on their backs that appear to be attached with straps. Although some scholars have identified these figures as the legendary Cretan craftsman Daidalos and his son Icarus, they probably represent local daemonic beings. Below them are two panthers with a common head.
Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
Open Access
As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.
API
Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.
Use your arrow keys to navigate the tabs below, and your tab key to choose an item
Title:Bronze helmet
Period:Archaic
Date:late 7th century BCE
Culture:Greek, Cretan
Medium:Bronze
Dimensions:H. 8 1/4 in. (20.96 cm)
Classification:Bronzes
Credit Line:Gift of Norbert Schimmel Trust, 1989
Accession Number:1989.281.50
Inscription: Above visor: "Neopolis"
Said to be from Afrati (ancient Arkades), Crete
By 1967 and until 1990, collection of Norbert Schimmel, New York; 1990-1992, with Norbert Schimmel Trust; acquired in 1992, gift of Norbert Schimmel Trust.
Mitten, David Gordon and Suzannah F. Doeringer. 1967. Master Bronzes from the Classical World no. 29, pp. 45–47, Mainz am Rhein: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.
Matz, Friedrich. 1970. Dädalische Kunst auf Kreta im 7. Jahrhundert v. Chr no. A1, pp. 28–29, pls. 5-6, Mainz am Rhein: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.
Hoffmann, Herbert and Antony Erich Raubitschek. 1972. Early Cretan Armorers. nos. H1, H2, pls. 1–10, Mainz: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.
Muscarella, Oscar White. 1974. Ancient Art: The Norbert Schimmel Collection no. 15, Mainz am Rhein: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.
Neumann, Gunter. 1974. "Zu den kretischen Kriegernamen auf den Waffen von Afrati." Zeitschrift für vergleichende Sprachforschung, : pp. 32–40.
Metropolitan Museum of Art. 1979. Greek Art of the Aegean Islands. no. 89, p. 140, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Hampe, Roland and Erika Simon. 1980. Un Millénaire d'Art Grec 1600-600. p. 125, pls. 189–91, Fribourg, Suisse: Office du Livre.
Milleker, Elizabeth J. 1992. "Ancient Art: Gifts from The Norbert Schimmel Collection: Greek and Roman." Bulletin of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 49(4): p. 38.
von Bothmer, Dietrich, Carlos A. Picón, Joan R. Mertens, and Elizabeth J. Milleker. 1993. "Recent Acquisitions: A Selection 1992–1993." Bulletin of The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 51(2): p. 38.
Bodel, John P. and Stephen Tracy. 1997. Greek and Latin Inscriptions in the USA : A Checklist. p. 192, Rome: American Academy in Rome.
Hemingway, Seán A. 2000. "Bronze Sculpture." Making Classical Art: Process and Practice, Roger Ling, ed. p. 38, pl. 2, Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia.
Steinhart, Matthias. 2004. Die Kunst der Nachahmung : Darstellungen mimetischer Vorführungen in der greiechischen Bildkunst archaischer und klassischer Zeit. pl. 6, 3, Mainz am Rhein: Verlag Philipp von Zabern.
Picón, Carlos A. 2007. Art of the Classical World in the Metropolitan Museum of Art: Greece, Cyprus, Etruria, Rome no. 37, pp. 54, 416, New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Hixenbaugh, Randall. 2019. Ancient Greek Helmets : A complete guide and catalog. no. C23, pp. 345, 581, New York: Hixenbaugh Ancient Art.
Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2020. ART = Discovering Infinite Connections in Art History. p. 266, New York: Phaidon Press.
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
The Museum's collection of Greek and Roman art comprises more than 30,000 works ranging in date from the Neolithic period to the time of the Roman emperor Constantine's conversion to Christianity in A.D. 312.
