A superb pair of Late Roman helmets found in 1955 in Berkasovo, Serbia, near the Roman settlement of Sirmium (modern-day Sremska Mitrovica), capital of the province of Pannonia and later one of the four imperial capitals in AD 294; the settlement was also the home of the praetorian prefecture of Illyricum as of AD 347 (a prefecture being the largest administrative division of land in the Late Roman world, of which there were four), making Sirmium an important settlement in the Roman Empire for centuries. These helmets are dated to the earlier half of the 4th Century.

Both are constructed in the typical Late Roman helmet style using bowls adjoined by a central longitudinal ridge. Helmets in the Intercissa style use two halves of a bowl to form the shape (bipartite), while helmets in the Berkasovo I style use four bowl sections held together by a ring around the base and two plates on either side of the ridge (quadripartite) as seen below (there are of course, as ever, exceptions to the rule - the Berkasovo II itself being one of them, though still named Berkasovo due to the finds context).

They are made of iron and then covered with a silver gilded sheet, thus protecting them against rust and adding decoration, and the first (the Berkasovo I, worn by group member Ross Cronshaw) incorporates a series of decorative glass gems, a trait shared with the equally impressive Budapest helmet, and a unique style of ornamental metal crest down the ridge (also studded with decorative gems). The Intercissa IV helmet also incorporates a metal crest, but in a straight “dorsal fin” shape, imitating the appearance of a feathered or horsehair crest similar to those depicted in Hellenistic artwork.

We can also see on the Berkasovo I some immaculate hand-made relief work incorporating zoomorphic designs and geometric patterns, and an inscription over the left protective guard-plate in Greek; "ΔΙΖΖΩΝ ΥΓΙΕΝΩΝ ΦΟΡΙ ΑΥΕΙΤΟΥ ΕΡΓΟΝ ΓοΚ Α Γρ ΙΒ" or (roughly translated) "Dizzon, wear this in good health, from Avitus" implying the helmet was perhaps a gift for Dizzon or Dizzon was familiar with the manufacturer, a man named Avitus.

The Berkasovo II (our reconstruction worn by group member Tony Gilligan) also sports relief decorations, in an "S"-shaped pattern remeniscent of a chain, as well as silver rivet balls and an inscription in Latin; "VICIT [LIC] INIANA" on the guard-plate. This inscription dates the find to the army of the Emperor Licinius, the foe of Constantine I. In AD 308, Licinius became Augustus prior to a conflict between the two for control of the throne, and he eventually fell in AD 324, giving this helmet a wide date-range. Licinius served as prefect for Pannonia with his residence in Sirmium from 308–314 AD, making it possible this is the most likely period the helmet was deposited here.

One source suggests the helmets were deposited in what seems to be a 4th/5th century Roman pantry.

The Berkasovo pair is currently on display in Vojvodina museum, Serbia.

Whilst considered high-status to a degree, certainly amongst the re-enactment community, the forever-disappointing lack of finds available (and high prevalence of gilding or tinning on helmet finds in this period) will eternally beg the question of whether these are still a relatively common item and even more lavish examples still elude us (and perhaps perpetually will - such is the nature of archaeology). Constantine I and Valentinian I are recorded as owning gem-encrusted gold helmets rather than simple glass, suggesting that whilst the basic construction of an even higher-status helmet may remain the same the materials and decorative techniques would be somehow even more luxurious.

An interesting note on the quality of materials used comes from another Berkasovo-style helmet found in Deurne in the Netherlands - as noted by Carol van Driel-Murray the Deurne helmet has the 
weight of silver recorded on the outside of the helmet, and contains a relatively small amount of gold in the gilding, perhaps suggesting the amount of precious metals used in each helmet issued was officially recorded and monitored according to the relevant status of the individual (or group of individuals) a helmet (or batch of helmets) was intended for.