Ethnographic Arms & Armour - View Single Post - Na-gin protector, is it Moro?

VVV · 18th January 2009, 04:41 PM

A collector friend of mine wrote an article in the Swedish (actually Scanian) Arms Collector Magazine about those, East Indonesian, helmets in February 1989. There were two major kinds; the heavier (about 2 kg) European kind made of iron and the lighter (about 1 kg) domestic kind made of thin brass.
According to his research they origin from the early contacts with the Portugese around 1550 in Ternate (West of Halmahera). The holes in the front are to attach bird feathers and the domestic helmets never had cushions as they wore them on top of headscarves. The helmets found in North Sulawesi were imported from Ternate around 1650 after a cultural exchange between the local chieftains and the sultan of Ternate, as well as the Dutch local governor. They were used as regalia carried by the local guards.

Michael

18th January 2009, 04:41 PM	#15
VVV Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sweden Posts: 1,637	A collector friend of mine wrote an article in the Swedish (actually Scanian) Arms Collector Magazine about those, East Indonesian, helmets in February 1989. There were two major kinds; the heavier (about 2 kg) European kind made of iron and the lighter (about 1 kg) domestic kind made of thin brass. According to his research they origin from the early contacts with the Portugese around 1550 in Ternate (West of Halmahera). The holes in the front are to attach bird feathers and the domestic helmets never had cushions as they wore them on top of headscarves. The helmets found in North Sulawesi were imported from Ternate around 1650 after a cultural exchange between the local chieftains and the sultan of Ternate, as well as the Dutch local governor. They were used as regalia carried by the local guards. Michael Last edited by VVV; 18th January 2009 at 04:56 PM.