The Sutton Hoo helmet was both a functional piece of battle equipment and a symbol of its owner's power and prestige.
It would have offered considerable protection if ever used in battle, and as the richest known Anglo-Saxon helmet, indicated its owner's status.
As it is older than the man with whom it was buried, the helmet may have been an heirloom, symbolic of the ceremonies of its owner's life and death; it may further be a progenitor of crowns, known in Europe since around the twelfth century, indicating both a leader's right to rule and his connection with the gods.

Whether or not the helmet was ever worn in battle is unknown, but though delicately ornamented, it would have done the job well.
Other than leaving spaces to allow movement of the shoulders and arms, the helmet leaves its wearer's head entirely protected, and unlike any other known helmet of its general type, it has a face mask, one-piece cap, and solid neck guard.
The iron and silver crest would have helped deflect the force of falling blows, and holes underneath the nose would have created a breathable—if stifling—environment within.
If two suppositions are to be taken as true—that damage to the back of the helmet occurred before the burial, and that Raedwald is properly identified as the helmet's owner—then the helmet can be at least described as one that saw some degree of use during its lifetime, and that was owned by a person who saw battle.

Beyond its functional purpose, the Sutton Hoo helmet would have served to convey the high status of its owner.
Little more than an iron cap, such as the helmets from Shorwell and Wollaston, would be needed if one only sought to protect one's head.
Yet helmets were objects of prestige in Anglo-Saxon England, as indicated by archaeological, literary, and historical evidence.
Helmets are relatively common in Beowulf, an Anglo-Saxon poem focused on royals and their aristocratic milieu, but rarely found today; only six are currently known, despite the excavation of thousands of graves from the period.
Much as this could reflect poor rates of artefact survival, or even recognition—the Shorwell helmet was at first misidentified as a "fragmentary iron vessel", the Wollaston helmet as a bucket, and a plain Roman helmet from Burgh Castle as "cauldron fragments"—the extreme scarcity suggests that helmets were never deposited in great numbers, and signified the importance of those wearing them.

That the Sutton Hoo helmet was likely around 100 years old when buried suggests that it may have been an heirloom, a sample from the royal treasury passed down from another generation.
The same suggestion has been made for the shield from the burial, as both it and the helmet are objects with distinct Swedish influence.
The importance of heirloom items is well documented in poetry; every sword of note in Beowulf, from Hrunting to Nægling, has such a history, and the poem's hero, whose own pyre is stacked with helmets, uses his dying words to bestow upon his follower Wiglaf a gold collar, byrnie, and gilded helmet.
The passing of the helmet, from warrior to warrior and then to the ground, would have been symbolic of the larger ceremony of the passing of titles and power, and the final elegy for the man buried in the mound.

The helmet easily outstrips all other known examples in terms of richness.
It is uniquely from a presumed royal burial, at a time when the monarchy was defined by the helmet and the sword.
Helmets, perhaps because they were worn by rulers so frequently, may have come to be identified as crowns.
Though many intermediate stages in the typological and functional evolution are yet unknown, the earliest European crowns that survive, such as the turn-of-the-millennium crown of Saint Stephen and of Constance of Aragon, share the same basic construction of many helmets, including the Coppergate example, contemporaneous with the one from Sutton Hoo: a brow band, a nose-to-nape band, and lateral bands.
A divine right to rule, or at least a connection between gods and leader—also seen on earlier Roman helmets, which sometime
The Sutton Hoo helmet was both a functional piece of battle equipment and a symbol of its owner's power and prestige. It would have offered considerable protection if ever used in battle, and as the richest known Anglo-Saxon helmet, indicated its owner's status. As it is older than the man with whom it was buried, the helmet may have been an heirloom, symbolic of the ceremonies of its owner's life and death; it may further be a progenitor of crowns, known in Europe since around the twelfth century, indicating both a leader's right to rule and his connection with the gods.
Whether or not the helmet was ever worn in battle is unknown, but though delicately ornamented, it would have done the job well. Other than leaving spaces to allow movement of the shoulders and arms, the helmet leaves its wearer's head entirely protected, and unlike any other known helmet of its general type, it has a face mask, one-piece cap, and solid neck guard. The iron and silver crest would have helped deflect the force of falling blows, and holes underneath the nose would have created a breathable—if stifling—environment within. If two suppositions are to be taken as true—that damage to the back of the helmet occurred before the burial, and that Raedwald is properly identified as the helmet's owner—then the helmet can be at least described as one that saw some degree of use during its lifetime, and that was owned by a person who saw battle.
Beyond its functional purpose, the Sutton Hoo helmet would have served to convey the high status of its owner. Little more than an iron cap, such as the helmets from Shorwell and Wollaston, would be needed if one only sought to protect one's head. Yet helmets were objects of prestige in Anglo-Saxon England, as indicated by archaeological, literary, and historical evidence. Helmets are relatively common in Beowulf, an Anglo-Saxon poem focused on royals and their aristocratic milieu, but rarely found today; only six are currently known, despite the excavation of thousands of graves from the period. Much as this could reflect poor rates of artefact survival, or even recognition—the Shorwell helmet was at first misidentified as a "fragmentary iron vessel", the Wollaston helmet as a bucket, and a plain Roman helmet from Burgh Castle as "cauldron fragments"—the extreme scarcity suggests that helmets were never deposited in great numbers, and signified the importance of those wearing them.
That the Sutton Hoo helmet was likely around 100 years old when buried suggests that it may have been an heirloom, a sample from the royal treasury passed down from another generation. The same suggestion has been made for the shield from the burial, as both it and the helmet are objects with distinct Swedish influence. The importance of heirloom items is well documented in poetry; every sword of note in Beowulf, from Hrunting to Nægling, has such a history, and the poem's hero, whose own pyre is stacked with helmets, uses his dying words to bestow upon his follower Wiglaf a gold collar, byrnie, and gilded helmet. The passing of the helmet, from warrior to warrior and then to the ground, would have been symbolic of the larger ceremony of the passing of titles and power, and the final elegy for the man buried in the mound.
The helmet easily outstrips all other known examples in terms of richness. It is uniquely from a presumed royal burial, at a time when the monarchy was defined by the helmet and the sword. Helmets, perhaps because they were worn by rulers so frequently, may have come to be identified as crowns. Though many intermediate stages in the typological and functional evolution are yet unknown, the earliest European crowns that survive, such as the turn-of-the-millennium crown of Saint Stephen and of Constance of Aragon, share the same basic construction of many helmets, including the Coppergate example, contemporaneous with the one from Sutton Hoo: a brow band, a nose-to-nape band, and lateral bands. A divine right to rule, or at least a connection between gods and leader—also seen on earlier Roman helmets, which sometime
Sutton Hoo helmet