Museum outbid as mask goes for $4 6m

An auctioneer for Christie's sells The Crosby Garrett Helmet. Photo / Getty Images.

Nearly 2000 years after it was entombed in the soil of a Cumbrian field, and five months since it dazzled the world when it was unearthed by two men with a metal detector, a Roman mask was sold in just three minutes yesterday - leaving a mystery bidder with a gem on his hands and a community in tears.

The bronze cavalry parade helmet, dating from the late first century or early second century, was sold at auction in London for £2,281,250 ($4.6 million) - about eight times its expected price - to an anonymous telephone buyer.

The sale was a disappointment for staff at Tullie House Museum in Carlisle, who had spent weeks trying to raise enough money to keep the artefact in Cumbria for public display. They had funds to stay in the bidding until it reached £1.7 million - a staggering sum for a provincial museum - but it was not enough.

Campaigners had hoped that having the Crosby Garrett Helmet, named after the village near which it was found, on show would draw thousands of visitors. Their only hope now is that the Government will place an export ban on the mask, giving the museum time to raise the extra cash to match the sale price.

The bronze helmet, described by experts as "an extraordinary example of Roman metalwork at its zenith", would not have been worn in combat but kept for parades and festivals. Only three of its kind have ever been found complete in Britain. The Ribchester Helmet was uncovered in 1796 and is in the British Museum. The Newstead Helmet, found in about 1905, is in the Museum of Antiquities in Edinburgh.

The guide price for the Crosby Garrett Helmet was between £200,000 and £300,000. But when it went on sale at Christie's, six bidders entered the fray - two in the room, three by phone and one via internet from California - and swiftly pushed up the price. It is thought the buyer may be from overseas. The bidder from California dropped out at £800,000.

The helmet was unearthed in May by an unnamed father and son with a metal detector.

- Independent