small bronze helmet with coiling serpent crest

Height including base: 17cm (though there may be a few millimetres of variation)

The prototype for these glorious helmets is the plain, uncrested Corinthian style of the 6th century BC. 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.

The motifs on the crests are either geometric designs or symbolic creatures.

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! Where mounted, they are on a marble base.

As a symbol of healing and protection, the serpent was associated with the cult of Asklepios, god of medicine.

The Greeks feared it for its tremendous powers, but it was also revered as a defender and guardian. It was a symbol of regeneration and renewal, and the Romans later regarded it as representing the spirit, or 'genius', of the family.

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 proud to have been working with the Semitekolo family foundry since 1999. It has been a privilege to handle these gorgeous pieces and to sell them to customers all over the world.