Original 18th – 19th Century Persian Kulah Khud Spiked War Helmet circa 1780 – 1820 Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. We’ve all seen the Indo-Persian KULAH KHUD spiked helmets of the 18th and 19th centuries. This design goes back to the times of the Crusaders and Saladin during the battles over the Holy Land in the 13th and 14th centuries.

Our helmet is etched and chiseled steel covered in oriental designs, with a fixed bar in the front center. This would sometimes slide down to cover the nose area, but this one does not. The designs include people on horseback, tigers, and a multitude of other motifs. The circular bowl shaped helmet is fully surrounded with a chain mail coif leaving an opening for the face. In addition to the Spike to the top there are two plume holders, one on each side.

In fine condition having recently been purchased from a large Pacific Coast collection, where it has lain for undisturbed for years, the war trophy of some Officers who took part in Queen Victoria’s Colonial Campaigns.

Ready to display!

History of the Kulah Khud Helmet:

Kulah Khuds (known as top in India and Devil mask among English speaking arms collectors) were used in ancient western Asia for battle and as decorative head pieces. This style of helmet originated in Central Asia, and were worn by [Persian Empire] soldiers in the 18th and 19th Centuries. Made of steel, these bowl-shaped helmets were designed as either low and flat, or high and pointed. They sometimes contained a spike socket at the top of the helmet, which resembles a spearhead with a cross-like section. Two or three plume holders were attached on either side of the skull, used to mount feathers from birds such as the egret.

The helmet had an iron-and-brass or brass-and-copper male aventail that hung at the base of the helmet to protect the neck, shoulders and the temple of the face. Sometimes, the male aventail extended down to cover the eyes and the nose. The low end of the male aventail was often shaped in a triangular pattern so they stood relatively affixed on the front and back side of the warrior’s shoulder.

A bar made of iron or steel was attached to the front of the helmet with a bracket and could be adjusted in position – so when not in use, it could slide upward and fasten with a link, a hook, or a set screw. The two ends of the bar expanded into leaf-shaped plates, forming a final. In some Indian tops, the lower end of the bar was designed as a large crescent-shaped metal guard that protected most of the face below the eye level. One rare version of the helmet included three irons protecting the nose and the cheeks