In the first or early second century CE, an elite Roman cavalryman donned a sports helmet unlike any ordinary war gear—its iron skull cap was skillfully hammered to mimic elaborately dressed hair, while a silvered bronze face mask bore the gilded lips and eyelids of a youthful visage.Centuries later, around 1915, the helmet lay hidden in the gravel bed of the Waal river near Nijmegen. A chance discovery under a railway bridge revealed not only its ornate diadem—adorned with five gilded busts of two men and three women—but also stray cheek guards from another helmet and a handful of blue glass beads that spoke of ritual or display.James Curle, the Scottish archaeologist who first described the find to the Society for the Promotion of Roman Studies, noted the helmet’s single horizontal hinge and its artful blend of iron, bronze and brass. These features place it firmly in Robinson’s type D category of cavalry sports helmets, worn during mock combats that showcased both horsemanship and high-status flair.After a stint in Gerard Marius Kam’s private museum, the helmet became part of the Valkhof Museum collection in Nijmegen, where visitors can still admire its silvered neck guard and the scratched name “Marcianus” on its cheek—an echo of the rider who once claimed it as his own.Today, the Nijmegen Helmet stands as both a testament to Rome’s love of spectacle and the craftsmanship of its armourers, offering a vivid link between a riverbank discovery and the glittering pageantry of ancient cavalry tournaments.