Original 19th Century Victorian Copy of 15th Century Knight’s Tournament Great Bascinet Helmet Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. The bascinet – also bassinet, basinet, or bazineto – was a Medieval European open-faced combat helmet. It evolved from a type of iron or steel skullcap, but had a more pointed apex to the skull, and it extended downwards at the rear and sides to afford protection for the neck. A mail curtain (aventail or camail) was usually attached to the lower edge of the helmet to protect the throat, neck and shoulders. A visor (face guard) was often employed from ca. 1330 to protect the exposed face. Early in the fifteenth century, the camail began to be replaced by a plate metal gorget, giving rise to the so-called “great bascinet”.

The replacement of the camail by a plate gorget gave rise to the form of helmet known as the “great bascinet”. However, many scholars consider that the term should be reserved for bascinets where the skull, and baviere – if present, was fixed to the gorget, rendering the whole helmet immobile.

Early gorgets were wide, copying the shape of the earlier aventail, however, with the narrowing of the neck opening the gorget plates had to be hinged to allow the helmet to be put on. Early great bascinets had the skull of the helmet riveted to the rear gorget plate, however, some later great bascinets had the skull forged in a single piece with the rear gorget plate. The gorget was often strapped to both the breast and backplate of the cuirass. In this late form the head was relieved of the entire weight of the helmet, which rested on the shoulders; however, the helmet was rendered totally immobile and the head of the wearer had only limited abilities to move inside it. Though very strongly constructed, this type of helmet imposed limitations on the wearer’s vision and agility.

The helmet is in good overall condition with some repairs and evidence of solder and missing attachments but overall very presentable. These armor, shields and helmets are very collectible and as they were made specially for museum exhibition to a standard so high that “Museum curators cannot tell the difference between the copies and the originals.

Comes ready to display in your medieval collections!