Coțofenești golden helmet stolen from an exhibition in the Netherlands: photos and history of a unique 2500-year-old artifact

The iconic 2,500-year-old Coțofenești helmet, made of 1 kg of pure gold, was the main exhibit in the exhibition "Dacia - The Land of Gold and Silver," which showcased ancient Dacian treasures on loan from Romania. However, during a daring robbery at the Drenthe Museum in Assen, the Netherlands, the attackers planted explosives and stole the iconic helmet and royal bracelets.

The golden helmet was used by the Dacian nobility and was lent to the Drenthe Museum by the National Historical Museum of Romania in Bucharest. According to experts, the stolen artifacts symbolize the advanced metalworking skills of the Dacians and their wealth derived from the gold-rich Transylvanian Ore Mountains, Arkeonews reports.

Reaction to the robbery

The robbery drew strong reactions from Dutch and Romanian officials. Drenthe Museum director Harry Tupan called the incident "a black day for the museum and our Romanian colleagues," noting that in the museum's 170-year history it had never faced such a significant crime.

The mayor of Assen, Marco Out, expressed shock at the robbery. He said that numerous government agencies, including the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are involved in the investigation.

The Dutch authorities have activated mechanisms of cross-border cooperation and involved Interpol in the search for the stolen treasures.

According to scholars, the theft of the Coțofenești helmet and other Dacian artifacts is a significant blow to efforts to preserve and showcase the cultural heritage of ancient civilizations. These objects not only represent historical craftsmanship, but also serve as symbols of Romanian identity and history.

The history of the golden helmet

It is difficult to overestimate the Coțofenești helmet, which dates back to 400 BC. Scientists attribute it to the Geto-Dacian culture and assume that it belonged to an unknown king, experts write on the History and Archaeology Facebook page.

According to historians, the most interesting thing is the helmet's carvings, which contain a number of mythical creatures and illustrations of ritual sacrifice. Both sides depict a ram with a human figure standing over it, armed with a short knife.

Experts suggest that this ram sacrifice could have been performed by a "king-priest-god". The image has been interpreted as scenes from the Mysteries of Mithras - the killing of a bull by Mithras, the Roman god.

The helmet also depicts a series of three winged creatures with human faces, long forearms, and long tails, which are probably related to Iranian sphinx images. The winged mythical beasts below are griffins or even simurghs, experts say.

Interestingly, the front of the helmet depicts eyes, which could serve as protection from vicious blows, or as evidence of the hawkish vision of the headdress wearer.

Other decorations, such as "peas", patterns separating creatures, and a spiral, are specific motifs of Geto-Dak art, historians say.

It is known that the golden helmet was accidentally found by a boy named Traian in 1929 in the village of Poiana Coțofenești, now Verbileu, Romania.

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