Konos ( grc, κῶνος: ''cone, spinning top'') is a conical Macedonian helmet worn in combat during the

Hellenistic era In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in 3 ...

. Its pointed shape is similar to the

pilos The pileus (, ; also or in Latin) was a brimless felt cap worn in Ancient Greece, Etruria, Illyria (Pannonia), later also introduced in Ancient Rome. The pileus also appears on Apulian red-figure pottery. The pilos together with the petasos w ...

helmet that is placed underneath a konos as an interior protector. Although close in design, a pilos helmet has a small visor around the opening and a konos helmet is created to have a thin brim protruding from its base and closely fits around the warrior's head. Bronze ear guards that hang to the jawbone were later added for further protection, also differing from the pilos. Spiral characteristics from the Ionic order are engraved across the front of the helmet for design. The Greek crest is fixed across the ridges of the helmet as a way to demonstrate tribe recognition. The konos and pilos helmet belong to one of five standard types of

ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

headgear and weaponry. A clause of military regulation from

Amphipolis Amphipolis ( ell, Αμφίπολη, translit=Amfipoli; grc, Ἀμφίπολις, translit=Amphipolis) is a municipality in the Serres regional unit, Macedonia, Greece. The seat of the municipality is Rodolivos. It was an important ancient Gr ...

proclaims that the konos is to be the helmet of

phalangites The Macedonian phalanx ( gr, Μακεδονική φάλαγξ) was an infantry formation developed by Philip II from the classical Greek phalanx, of which the main innovation was the use of the sarissa, a 6 meter pike. It was famously commanded ...

—infantry standing in close rectangular or squared formation. According to the Military Decree of Amphipolis, "...those not bearing the weapons appropriate to them are to be fined: two

obols The obol ( grc-gre, , ''obolos'', also ὀβελός (''obelós''), ὀβελλός (''obellós''), ὀδελός (''odelós''). "nail, metal spit"; la, obolus) was a form of ancient Greek currency and weight. Currency Obols were u ...

for the kotthybos, the same amount for the konos, three obols for the

sarissa The sarisa or sarissa ( el, σάρισα) was a long spear or pike about in length. It was introduced by Philip II of Macedon and was used in his Macedonian phalanxes as a replacement for the earlier dory, which was considerably shorter. The ...

..."Austin Page, M. M. ''The Hellenistic world from Alexander to the Roman Conquest'' , p.181

References

Ancient Greek military terminology Ancient Macedonian military equipment Ancient Greek helmets {{AncientGreece-stub

See also

References