Thanks for the reply B.I. It is a bizarre piece. I suppose it could be a parade helmet, as you pointed out the peak would be fairly unstable. I still cannot help wondering why such an impractical helmet?
With regards to my 1st impression, I believe the Ottomans were in the habit of modifying captured helmets. If I remember rightly, the Royal Armouries (I've not been there since they moved it to Leeds) had a very tall Persian helmet which was "Ottomanified" by having a peak added on to it, and I wondered if the same thing had happened here.
H.R. Robinson's Oriental Armour has a line drawing of a slightly more conventional
shishak with the peak suspended by hinges rather than usual six rivets attaching it to the brow. Another design which I thought was highly impractical.
This helmet does clear up one thing for me. I have often wondered if the lower edge of the mail brow piece of a
kulah khud stopped above the eyes or if it was in front the eyes. Obviously with this particular helmet, if the mail was in front of the eyes the wearer would not be able to see.
