The helmet’s fashion, known as the spangenhelm, was the most commonly found style dating to the late Vendel period. It consists of a helmet with a nose guard and eye protection made entirely of iron. The detailing is done in the Oseberg style, which consists of swirling patterns with a “gripping beast” motif, and was very common during the Vendel period. The style takes its name from the Oseberg ship, which was discovered in Norway.

This particular helmet, as well as the other ones found in Vendel, give us a look into what Norse warriors wore to the battlefield. The detailing suggests a person of some status, while the fact that the man was buried with his helmet also shows his importance in battle.

Despite popular beliefs of Vikings donning horned helmets, no such piece of headgear has yet been found. Most helmets found during the early Viking age are much like the those found in Vendel: a spangenhelm with a nose- and eye-guard made of iron with some form of decorative patterning.

The popular image of horned helmets dates back to the 1800s, when Scandinavian artists began to include them in their portrayals of the vikings. Wagner’s 1870s opera “Der Ring des Nibelungen” featured costume designer Carl Emil Doepler, who designed horned helmets for the Viking characters, which helped make the stereotype stick. These artists were probably inspired by ancient Greek and Roman chronicles, which depict northern Europeans wearing highly decorated helmets. These descriptions include helmets donned with antlers, wings, and horns. Though these helmets were most likely worn for ceremonial purposes by Norse and Germanic priests and died out before the Viking age, it still gives us one of the biggest “Viking” misconceptions to date.²