|
|
The helmet is such a common feature
today that right from two wheeler drivers to cricket players and
footballers sport helmets. This defensive covering for the head
was once thought of as a part of military equipment only.
Today, of course, policemen, firemen, sportsmen and even the
common people use helmets to protect themselves from head
injuries.
Early versions
The oldest type of helmet, the military helmet, dates back
from ancient times. It was originally intended to protect the
head, face, and at even the neck, from blows delivered with
swords, spears, arrows and other weapons during skirmishes and
warfare.
|
|
Early Assyrians and Persians used helmets
made of leather and iron. Iron and steel helmets developed in
medieval Persia, Turkey and India are treasured as artifacts today.
The Chinese and Tibetans used helmets made of bronze, leather and
horn for centuries.
|
 |
|
|
The Greeks lent the art of helmet making a
specialized skill and craftsmanship. They devised bronze helmets
that covered the entire head; of course, they remembered to leave a
narrow opening to enable the user to see and breathe. The Romans
introduced variety to the art of helmet making and developed several
forms of helmets. They made some specialized helmets too, such as
the round legionary’s helmet and the gladiator’s helmet. The latter
has a broad brim and pierced visor, which gave exceptional
protection to the head, face and neck.
Leather and metal helmets
Helmets made of leather reinforced with bronze or iron straps
were used in northern and Western Europe in the early days. They
were conical or hemispherical in shape and were in fact skullcaps,
more than anything else. Over a period, the amount of metal used was
increased and soon helmets made entirely of iron began to be
produced. The shapes remained the same – conical or hemispherical.
Around the year 1200, flat-topped cylinders
known as helm or heaume began to be used over the skullcap, during
combat. People soon realized that rounded contours would cause blows
to glance off and protect the user further. The skullcap was also
spruced up with attachments for protection for the neck and a
movable visor for the face. It came to be known as a basinet.
However, it took another two or three centuries before sophisticated
helmets with hinges and pivots, which snugly fitted over the head,
were developed. People realized that when the helmet sat correctly
around the head and neck, chances of it being knocked off during
combat were greatly reduced.
Steel helmets
Light, open helmets with broad brims were widely used in the
sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. During the next two centuries,
the use of helmet in warfare began to decline, when firearms began
to replace swords and spears. Cavalrymen continued to use light
helmets. However, during the First World War, the use of steel
helmets was made compulsory for infantry. Steel protected the head
from the high-velocity metal fragments of exploding artillery
shells. During the war days, it was the French who first adopted the
helmet as standard equipment in late 1914. They were followed by the
British, the Germans and later, the rest of Europe.
Modern helmets
The modern infantry helmet is a smoothly rounded hemisphere.
They have been so designed that bullets or shell fragments will
bounce off it, without imparting their full impact. It has a
hardened-steel shell with an inner lining in cloth. It weighs around
half to 1.8 kilograms. |
