Casting and hammering Corinthian helmets

[The Dioskouri]

Not really. A cast metal piece of any copper alloy like bronze or brass is strongest in casted shape. As it is molten when poured and cools in its shape. You could view this process as like super annealing. Rather than just heating to de-stress the piece, casting it incurs no stress whatsoever. The casted shape is stronger and will not easily deform. With hammered pieces you'll always have stress points or fracturing that needs to annealed and if you were over zealous with the hammer, no annealing will cure compression or fractures.

Any bronze can be worked hot or cold, it is just critical to understand the mechanical properties of the particular bronze you are working with. The original helmet alloy is a mystery I am working through as no one alive today has ever worked it.