HELMET

Defensive armour for the head: a word of Scand in avian derivation. The armour of the ancients, which particularly guarded the head, was known by the general denominations of head-piece, casque, and helmet. Helmets were anciently formed of various materials, but chiefly of skins of beasts, bra , and iron. An open helmet covers only the head, ears, and neck, leaving the face unguarded. Some open helmets have a bar or bars from the forehead to the chin, to guard against the transverse cut of a broad-sword; but it afibrds little defence against the point of a lance or sword. A close helmet entirely covers the head, face, and neck; having on the front perforations for the admi ion of air, and slits through which the wearer may see the objects around him; this part, which Is styled the visor (from the French word viser,to take aim), lifts up by means of a pivot over each ear. Some helmets have a bever (from buveur, drinker, or from the Italian bevere, to drink), whiA, when closed, covers the mouth and chin, and either lifts up by revolving on the same pivots as the visor, or lets down by means of two or more pivots on each side near the jaws. The use of the bever was to enable the wearer to eat and drink more commodicusly than could be done in a helmet with a visor only. The helmets of the Greeks and Romans were mostly open, not unlike scull-caps, as formerly worn by our dragoons. Montfaucon says he never saw an ancient helmet with a visor to raise or let down, although he is of opinion that they had those contrivances. It seems as if the Romans, at least those of which Pompey's army was composed at Pharsalia, had open helmets, as Caesar directed his soldiers to strike them in the face, which order, had their faces been covered, he would not have given. The two Grecian helmets ^in the British Museum have a kind of contrivance to cover the nose. Over the top of the helmet rose an elevated ridge called the crest, representing lions or dragons, ., to make the warrior appear taller and more terrible. {Mirror, 1839.) HELMET, or [s. 561]