Templar helmet with feathers, Marto

The great helmet or heaume, also called bucket helmet or barrel helmet, is a type of helmet from the High Middle Ages, which emerged at the end of the 12th century, in the context of the crusades and remained in use until the 14th century. It was used by knights and heavy infantry in most European armies (AD 1220 and 1540). In its simplest form, the great helmet was a cylinder with a flat steel top that completely covered the head. It had tiny openings for the eyes and mouth.

Years later, the upper part evolved into a conical shape and gave rise to the 'Sugarloaf helmet'. In Spanish it was called the Zaragoza helmet, in reference to the city where they were first introduced to the Iberian Peninsula. Later it was used in the Reconquest and there is evidence of them in the Conquest of Mallorca.

Although the great helm offered superior protection over earlier helmets, such as the nasal helm and spangenhelm, the knight's peripheral vision was limited, heavier, and its shape—with a flat top and no vent holes—provided little ventilation. and they warmed up quickly in hot weather. Knights used to wear the great helm over a coif (cowl) sometimes combined with a close-fitting iron cap known as a cervelliere.

The greathelm was often blackened, lacquered, or painted, and adorned with:

• Crosses and Symbols (ventilation zones)
• Horizontal and vertical crosshairs (viewfinder)
• Crowns, feathers, plumes, (as in the helmets belonging to the Military Orders).