15% OFF sitewide with code SELENE15
large bronze helmet with mythical sphinx crest
£450.00
The mythical sphinx fronts the crest of this lovely elegant helmet.
dimensions: Height on base: 38cm. Straight measurement from tip of the nosepiece to the tip of the rear crest: 24cm. Width at widest point when looking straight at it: 13cm
quantity
about the helmets
The prototype for these glorious helmets is the plain, uncrested Corinthian style of the 6th century BCE. Originals of these can be seen in museums across the world. Those in the Goulandris Collection in the Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens, and in the Museum of Ancient Olympia are the inspiration for this collection, created by Kostas Semitekolo.
The motifs on the crests are either geometric designs, such as the Greek key meandros motif, or symbolic creatures such as the griffin or the sphinx.
Original helmets are much thinner and lighter than these, and the largest 'life-size' copies are also smaller than the circumference of today's average male head. They are most definitely not to be worn! The crested ones are cast in two pieces, then the crest is inserted. If you look inside the helmets, you can often see the marks left by the wax during the casting process. Where mounted, they are on a solid marble base.
about the bronzes in this collection
The bronze pieces are cast in Greece using the traditional lost wax method. As nothing is mass-produced, there will inevitably be slight variations in texture, patina, and colour. No two pieces are ever the same. If mounted on a marble base, it will be a black or very dark grey base. There may be a variation of some millimetres in the dimensions of the base from time to time. It's All Greek is so grateful and so proud to have been working closely with the Semitekolo family foundry since 1999. It has been a privilege and a joy to handle, live with, and photograph these gorgeous pieces and to pass them on to customers all over the world. |
about the sphinx
Symbol of mystery. The hybrid mythical sphinx had the face of a woman, the body of a lion and the wings of a bird of prey.
In Greek mythology, the enigmatic sphinx was associated with Oedipus, to whom she posed her famous riddle. In Egyptian mythology, the sphinx was the guardian of sacred places.