02-12-2012, 01:46 AM
I am attempting my first helmet, dishing in a stump and then raising with steel stakes (mushroom, etc). The use of the stump for repoussee worked so well in a practice piece I'm thinking of creating a larger hollow to do the brows, hammering from the inside out.
I was wondering: I understand only iron anvils of various shapes have ever been found, and the images that survive are all only of lumpy anvils. Though I seem to remember there are some stone helmet forms, particularly for Greek cavalry helmets, there seems to be no equivalent of stakes.
I was thinking of getting a larger stump and hacking out a head form to shape the helmet over, and I wondered if anyone has tried doing that? Seems like that might actually be an easier way to mass produce helmets if iron anvils are in short supply. Wood would be easy to come by, shape, and recycle by burning when done. The use of wood would certainly account for the lack of forms in the record.
I was wondering: I understand only iron anvils of various shapes have ever been found, and the images that survive are all only of lumpy anvils. Though I seem to remember there are some stone helmet forms, particularly for Greek cavalry helmets, there seems to be no equivalent of stakes.
I was thinking of getting a larger stump and hacking out a head form to shape the helmet over, and I wondered if anyone has tried doing that? Seems like that might actually be an easier way to mass produce helmets if iron anvils are in short supply. Wood would be easy to come by, shape, and recycle by burning when done. The use of wood would certainly account for the lack of forms in the record.
Richard Campbell
Legio XX - Alexandria, Virginia
RAT member #6?
Legio XX - Alexandria, Virginia
RAT member #6?
