A sensational discovery of a royal necropolis was made back in 1940 near Ḥimṣ (Classical Emesa). It yielded several artifacts from the reign of Augustus Caesar or his immediate successors. Featured among the objects are ornaments of a sarcophagus, including gold leaves with several patterns related to Greco-Roman mythology, golden rings, a bracelet, and a neckpiece. Those treasures and some more have graced the National Museum of Damascus ever since.
At the center of this assortment is a 24.5 cm helmet with a mask dating, according to the French archaeologist Henri Seyrig (1895-1973), from the first century C.E. and crafted by a Syrian jeweler.
The item in question has two components: the upper one, or helmet, is made of a single piece of iron decorated with silver. The lower part consists of an iron mask entirely laminated with silver. Likely this set had been the pride of a private collection of a wealthy owner.
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