British Museum Photograph by Brian Harris 2021-07 Model released visitor looks at the reconstructed Sutton Hoo Helmet. Wikipedia: The Sutton Hoo helm
British Museum Photograph by Brian Harris 2021-07 Model released visitor looks at the reconstructed Sutton Hoo Helmet. Wikipedia: The Sutton Hoo helmet is an ornately decorated Anglo-Saxon helmet found during a 1939 excavation of the Sutton Hoo ship-burial. It was buried around 625 and is widely associated with King Rædwald of East Anglia; its elaborate decoration may have given it a secondary function akin to a crown. The helmet was both a functional piece of armour that would have offered considerable protection if ever used in warfare, and a decorative, prestigious piece of extravagant metalwork. It is described as "the most iconic object" from "one of the most spectacular archaeological discoveries ever made", and perhaps the most important known Anglo-Saxon artefact. The visage contains eyebrows, a nose, and moustache, creating the image of a man joined by a dragon's head to become a soaring dragon with outstretched wings. It has become a symbol of the Early Middle Ages and "of Archaeology in general". It was excavated as hundreds of rusted fragments, and was first displayed following an initial reconstruction in 1945–46, and then in its present form after a second reconstruction in 1970–71
Size: 5976px × 3984px
Location: British Museum London England
Photo credit: © BRIAN HARRIS / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: Yes
Keywords: ages, anglia, anglo, brian, british, burial, early, east, excavation, harris, helmet, hoo, hoo-ship, king, middle, museum, reconstructed, saxon, suffolk, sutton, ædwald
