Anthropomorphised warlike beings with horned helmets: Bronze Age Scandinavia, Sardinia, and Iberia compared


 Horned-helmet imagery continues to raise questions about what is local and what is global in Bronze Age Europe. How similar is the imagery found on Sardinia, in southwestern Iberia and southern Scandinavia in material appearance, medium of representation, and sociocultural setting? Does it occur at the same point in time? Does it spring from or transmit a shared idea? Analysis reveals intriguing patterns of similarity and difference between the three zones of horned-helmet imagery 1000–750 BC. The results point to actors and processes at the local level while also pinpointing interconnections. Across all three contexts, horns signify the potency of the helmet wearer, the quintessential warrior. Horns visualise a defined group of bellicose beings whose significance stems from commemorative and mortuary rites, sites, and beliefs – in conjunction with political processes. We suggest that the eye-catching imagery of very particular males wearing horned insignia relates on the one hand to local control of metals and on the other to the transfer of novel beliefs and cults involving embodied gigantisation. It is characteristic that the horned figure is adapted into some settings, but only sparingly or not at all in others. This imagery has a complex history, with Levantine roots in the LBA Mediterranean. The Scandinavian addendum to the network coincides with the metal-led Phoenician expansion and consolidation in the west from c. 1000 BC. A Mediterranean–Atlantic sea route is suggested, independent of the otherwise flourishing transalpine trading route.

while also pinpointing interconnections. Across all three contexts, horns signify the potency of the helmet wearer, the quintessential warrior. Horns visualise a defined group of bellicose beings whose significance stems from commemorative and mortuary rites, sites, and beliefs -in conjunction with political processes. We suggest that the eye-catching imagery of very particular males wearing horned insignia relates on the one hand to local control of metals and on the other to the transfer of novel beliefs and cults involving embodied gigantisation. It is characteristic that the horned figure is adapted into some settings, but only sparingly or not at all in others. This imagery has a complex history, with Levantine roots in the LBA Mediterranean. The Scandinavian addendum to the network coincides with the metal-led Phoenician expansion and consolidation in the west from c. 1000 BC. A Mediterranean-Atlantic sea route is suggested, independent of the otherwise flourishing transalpine trading route.

Introduction to the horned-helmet theme
The only extant horned metal helmets are those from Viksø, Denmark1. This pair of twin helmets communicates to the onlooker an extraordinary agency, suggesting that their wearers wielded power, whether perceived as god, human, or something in between. The Viksø helmets are not entirely unique, however. Similar imagery is portrayed, in differing media and on differing scales, both within and outside Denmark. The present contribution concerns representations of horned-helmet creatures in the Late Bronze Age and the earliest Iron Age2. This specific figure is usually associated with weapons and gear calling to mind the concept of the warrior's beauty3, but the meaning of the figure in several respects transcends this. The horned-helmet figure is not a standard representation of later Bronze Age warriorhood: other helmet types and human-like figures also occur. Rather, it conveys specific meanings, both local and overarching, that are challenging to unveil. The horned figure will be termed 'warrior' in what follows, even if this term is not entirely comprehensive, and our use of the term 'imagery/image' recognises a set of underlying ideas or situations. The geographical range of the figure reveals three zones -a southern zone in Sardinia and adjoining parts of Corsica, a middle zone in southwestern Iberia, and a northern zone in southern Scandinavia -thus highlighting three seas and potential movements over vast distances (Fig. 1). The horned warrior occurs in these three settings, but sparingly or not at all in the rest of Europe4 -except in the Near East and the east Mediterranean region, which boast a deep history of horned-helmet figures connected with divine rulership and with warfare at the time when the longstanding Bronze Age civilisation there was in rapid transition c. 1200 BC.
Three possible explanatory scenarios for the horns can be outlined: firstly, that they arose from autonomous local processes; secondly, that they were products of multidirectional culture flows in a phase of globalisa-4 Kristiansen 2014, 342-343. tion5; and thirdly, that they were the product of directional movements of goods and ideas as they were strategically appropriated by local culture and society. In the first two scenarios, the similarities between the figures are random and not directly connected, while in the third scenario, the interconnections are concrete and the result of planned movements.
If the figures are interlinked, their distinctly zone-specific occurrence may reveal relations between the Nordic Bronze Age, the Atlantic Bronze Age, and the West Mediterranean Bronze Age. This is not unlikely, as demonstrated by similar-style bronze objects present in parts of or across this huge area, with threads leading far into the east Mediterranean Sea: for example, Herzsprung-type round shields, Carp's Tongue swords, swords of Monte Sa'Idda type, mirrors, Huelva-type elbow brooches, Atlantic type cauldrons, roasting spits and flesh hooks, British-type 5 Compare Appadurai 1996; Vandkilde 2016, 109-111.

Fig. 1:
The three geographical zones with horned-helmet representations analysed in this article: Sardinia, southwest Iberia, and southern Scandinavia, with selected key sites. The distinctly western European focus hints at connections between the western Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic sea façade, and the Scandinavian part of the North Sea and inner waters. © V. Matta. socketed spearheads, and spearheads of Vénat type6. Furthermore, it has been suggested that copper from various ore provenances moved along these pathways7. Tin was a crucial travelling commodity, likely provided especially by Cornwall, an important hub from early on8.
Recent decades of research have strengthened the view that the Bronze Age was reliant on coveted metals traded in vast amounts and often long distance, hence connecting metal-rich tracts with regions poor in metals. Regular trade was made necessary by the unequal natural distribution of copper and, in particular, tin. The metals of gold, silver, and lead followed suit. Recent research has conceptualised this process, simultaneously local and global, as bronzization9. Other desirable commodities are known to have travelled far and wide, notably Baltic amber and Egyptian-Mesopotamian blue glass while exotic spices and cuisine culture have recently been added to the suite hence matching recent clear evidence of shared weighing technology from the east Mediterranean along the Atlantic façade as far as Britain and Scandina-via10. Such commodities were perhaps traded in return for or transported along with the metals. A shifting panoply of finished objects also travelled, notably weaponry and ceremonial drinking gear11. Local production and the serial spread of material simulacra constitute a further layer of cultural exchange, if one that is generally less well understood. Several of the war-effective flanged-hilted swords of the later Bronze Age seem to be locally made, albeit they suggest an international style among a professional set of warriors12. Similarly, large round shields in bronze appear in several variants13, and protective armour appears across Europe14. In other cases, objects present themselves as similar to an original in a manner that reveals leeway for local tradition and taste. Local Scandinavian emulations of Hajdúsámson-style metal-hilted swords and daggers were fashionable at an early stage of the Middle Bronze Age15. Beliefs tied to the sun-bird-ship motif likewise trav-6 Harrison 2004, figs 7,7;7,10-11;7,20;7,23;8,2-4;Kristiansen 1998, 77 figs 72-75;Cleary/Gibson 2019, fig. 4,19. 7 Ling et al. 2012Ling et al. 2014;Ling et al. 2019;Melheim et al. 2018. 8 Berger et al. 2019Vandkilde 2017, 142-175. 9 Vandkilde 2016. 10 Scott et al. 2021Varberg et al. 2016. Ialongo et al. 2021cf. Vandkilde 2021. 11 For example Hansen 1995Kristiansen 1998, 161-185;Thrane 1975. 12 See Harding 2007Jung et al. 2011;Kristiansen/Suchowska-Ducke 2015;Molloy 2010Molloy , 2018Stockhammer 2004. 13 Uckelmann 2012. 14 Mödlinger 2015. 15 Sørensen 2012Vandkilde 2014. elled widely across Urnfield Europe, perhaps rooted in the Mediterranean post-Bronze Age world16. The overall picture suggests that raw materials, ready-mades, and religious ideas were able to travel long distance, while simultaneously demonstrating that there is a crucial level of local strategies to consider too.
Against this background, this article sets out to specify how similar the horned-helmet imagery is in material appearance, medium of presentation, and sociocultural context. What can be inferred about the chronology? Do these helmet figures spring from, or transmit, a shared idea at all? Why was the horned figure adapted into these three settings, but sparingly or not at all in others? The puzzling complexity surrounding these representations led us to perform the empirical comparative analysis presented below; and the results provide the scaffolding for a step-by-step discussion of the people and the processes behind the qualitative data patterns, at the local level as well as in the cross-linkages.

Research and debates: an overview
While previous studies have readily affirmed linkages between the imagery found on Sardinia and in southwestern Iberia, faraway southern Scandinavia is often mentioned only in passing17. Even though the research literature is vast, the relations between these three groups have not previously been investigated in a targeted manner to establish similarities and differences.
Although the Scandinavian horned-helmet representations stand out among the crowd of Nordic Bronze Age products, they are rather understudied as a group within a group: the Viksø helmets and the Grevensvaenge figurines are often discussed with other similar representations within a universe of warriors and other figures18. In a recent fieldwork communiqué, Valentina Matta and colleagues19 acknowledged a relationship between the Sardinian and the Scandinavian imagery, drawing on Helle Vandkilde's reconsideration of the Viksø helmets20. Close similarities between the rock carvings of Tanum, 16 Kaul 1998, 277-284;Kossack 1954;Kristiansen/Larsson 2005, 306-319;Sprockhoff 1954. 17 For example Gonzalez 2018Norling-Christensen 1946a;1946b;Thrane 1975;Vandkilde 2013. 18 Glob 1962, 1969Kaul 1998;Norling-Christensen 1943;1946a;Vandkilde 2013. 19 Matta et al. 2020. 20 Vandkilde 2013 Sweden, and the Iberian stelae have recently been noted21 while Alpine and Galician rock art may provide general matrix-like similarities that transcend these regions22. Richard J. Harrison23 recognised only a structural similarity between the horned-helmet representations of the Iberian stelae, the Sardinian bronzetti, and the Monte Prama sculptures, also in Sardinia. He mentions the Viksø helmets fleetingly24, but argues against their potential Atlantic-Mediterranean footing and connects them instead to Central European crested helmets and to an innate Scandinavian tradition of metalworking. In this respect, Harrison follows Henrik Thrane, who stated25 that crested helmets have a wide distribution in Europe. It is indeed possible that that the helmets from Viksø were locally made, or at least reworked to fit local styles26.
Several studies deal with either the Sardinian or the Iberian depictions. Interrelationships are commented on now and again, recently by Ralph A. Gonzalez in a thorough study27. With regard to Iberia, Harrison published most of the c. 140 Iberian stelae28. He discussed the local context and provided a Mediterranean as well as Atlantic outlook. Several Spanish-language overviews and opinions also exist29. In Sardinia, the Nuragic bronze statuettes (henceforth bronzetti) have been intensively studied and their production, function, and context discussed. Approximately five hundred bronzetti exist, among which mostly the Uta-Abini group interests us here30. Supplementing this, the Monte Prama limestone giants are now also published31, although the site itself is still under excavation. It is now clear that horns in anthropomorphic and zoomorphic imagery have a deep ancestry, although it is accepted among researchers that Bronze Age versions often depict a cap or helmet to which the horns are attached, even in cases where this is not clear from the image, as on the Iberian stelae32.
Interpretations of the three geographical groups, separate or together, tend to follow parallel paths. In his  Barandiarán et al. 2017, 249-384;Pérez 2001. 30 Gonzalez 20122018, 111-128;Lilliu 1966. 31 Bedini et al. 2012Minoja/Usai 2014. 32 Brandherm 2008Gonzalez 2012;Harrison 2004, 46. 143-144. western Mediterranean opus, Gonzalez33 pursues a generalised idea of intercultural communication increasing over time. Harrison concludes that a connection may have existed between the Iberian stelae and the hero cults emerging post-Bronze Age in Greece34. Vandkilde35 likewise has touched upon heroes and their cults against the background of Iron Age veneration of the Bronze Age past, traceable in Homer's epics and Hesiod's writings. There is a consensus that the Sardinian bronzetti were votive gifts offered at sanctuaries and were also connected with the sculptures at the Monte Prama heroön and with social change in Nuragic society post-1200/1100 BC36.
Emerging political power37 is a recurrent theme in the interpretations of the three groups, although social models based on tribal egalitarianism have also been ad-vanced38. Kristian Kristiansen and Thomas B. Larsson39 associate bulls' horns attached to the head of male figures with divinities and sacred rulership; they find parallels for the Scandinavian cases in Cyprus (the Enkomi bronze statuette of a god or prince standing on top of an oxhide ingot) and in the ancient Near East (the Naram-Sin victory stela)40. Marta Diaz-Guardamino with colleagues41 advocates landscape approaches, using contextual and biographical analyses of the Iberian warrior stelae to point to the importance of 'persistent place'. Such a localisation approach is the anchor of connectivity studies: the stelae as memorials and as markers of ritual activities and territorial boundaries, as well as their proximity to copper ore (Sierra Morena) and road infrastructures, all resonate with Kristiansen's views42. The present contribution now adds to all this a comparative analysis of horned-helmet representations in the three zones, in conjunction with a scalar perspective on analysis and interpretation. Unfolding the horned-helmet imagery may reveal essential characteristics of LBA Europe at the threshold to the Iron Age. The Scandinavian case, located farthest away and rarely considered, merits particular consideration.

Scandinavian horned-helmet imagery in outline
Apart from the two normal-sized helmets from Viksø (Sealand) and a horn from a similar helmet found in Grevinge (Sealand)43, the Scandinavian repertoire of hornedhelmet expressions consists of three sets of two figurines from Grevensvaenge (Sealand)44, Fogdarp (Scania)45, and Kallerup (Thy, Jutland)46. Additionally, there are a pair of figures on a razor (Vestrup Mark, Jutland)47 and about forty images on rock in Bohuslän, western Sweden (SHFA)48. In total, fifty horned-helmet images have been recorded for this study in southern Scandinavia, either made in bronze or carved on rock, mostly the latter (Tab. 2). The motif favours iconically represented horned twin warriors.
Weaponry (especially oversized battle-axes with a distinctly splayed blade) and the horse-drawn ship are mandatory ingredients in the archetypal theme of the horned warrior twins. Variations are especially visible on the rock-carved scenes: a sheathed sword is obligatory, battle-axe, round shield, and spear are commonly depicted, and archery is sometimes present. The twin warrior figures are presented alone or, more rarely, among a group of warriors. Special females are affiliated and portrayed as powerful sacred beings (with large gold eyes, accentuated calf muscles), kneeling or shown as acrobats jumping the 43 Norling-Christensen 1943; 1946a. 44 For example Djupedal/Broholm 1953;Glob 1962;Thrane 1999. 45 Larsson 19742017. 46 Photos of the Kallerup figurines are available on the website of Thy Museum. The website also describes basic find circumstances http:// museumthy.dk/nyheder/kallerupfundet.aspx; http.//museumthy.dk/ nyheder/kallerupfundet-paa-top-10.aspx. 47 Ahlqvist 2020b; Bradley 2006. 48 Ling/Bertilsson 1994. https://www.shfa.se/ length of a ship, or otherwise engaged, for example, in scenes of hieros gamos49. The oversized standing figure behind the twins on the Vestrup Mark razor is probably a woman50. The association of these various figures with the night and day of the solar cycle is evident51. The entire ensemble was apparently attached to a wooden ship model with the stallions at the ship's bows52.
Importantly, similar horns also occur attached to snakes and horses (in the Fårdal setup of figurines at Viborg, Jutland, for example) and to horse-headed gold bowls. Similarly, the blowing horns or lurs, always in doubles, can essentially be perceived as a parallel way of portraying the horned twins, who are in fact sometimes depicted playing the lur53. These representations multiply the actual number of horned creatures, evidently sharing in a context of sacredness. In many cases, just the paraphernalia of the twins occurs as an offering or imaging, with the rest of the assemblage likely implied, as pars pro toto54.
Comparing chronology: coinciding trends towards politico-religious power (Tab. 1) The chronology may possibly be less secure than sometimes claimed55, and details are therefore debated56. Much knowledge is still based on typo-stylistic series and assem-  Fig. 3) with two horned warriors is often dated stylistically to NBA IV59, but the axes the warriors wield and the wavy snake-horse seem transitional to NBA V c. 1000-900 BC. Finally, in the Tanum rock art area, most images with horned figures are associated with NBA V ships, in accordance with Ling's ship typo-chronology60. An exception is the horned figures near an NBA IV ship at Bro Utmark 3 (SHFA)61. Horned figures on rock often carry round shields of Herzsprung type, or derivatives very similar to the pile of boss-decorated shields at Fröslunda, near Lake Vänarn, Sweden, which have a 14 C date around 800 BC62.
Organic material from inside the horns of one of the Viksø helmets (B13552) was recently radiocarbon dated. The 20mg sample (laboratory sample identifier: MAMS-42233) was pre-treated by the ABA-method (Acid/Base/ Acid) using washes of HCl, NaOH and again HCl in order to remove contaminations caused by carbonates and humic acids. The remaining sample material was combusted in an elemental analyser and reduced to graphite using a commercially available graphitisation system (IonPlus, AGE3). Radiocarbon determination was performed at CEZA (Mannheim, Germany) using a MICADAS-type accel-57 Olsen et al. 2011;Vandkilde et al. 1996. 58 Olsen et al. 2011  erator mass spectrometer (AMS)63. During measurement, the isotopic ratios of 14 C/ 12 C and 13 C/ 12 C from the sample, standards (Oxalsäure-II), blanks (phthalic acid) and control-standards (various IAEA standards) were measured. The dating results are reported as conventional 14 C dates, normalising to the standard delta-13 C value64 of -25‰. The 14 C age of the organic remains inside the horn of helmet B13552 (years before present, i. e. 1950) was measured to 2791 +/-21 years BP, which results in possible calibrated calendar date ranges from 1006-857 BC (with 95,4 % probability) and 976-907 BC (with 68.2 % probability), respectively. The terminus ante quem for the helmet's use before deposition is therefore 857-907 BC. Compared to the radiocarbon dates from cremated bones used by Jesper Olsen and colleagues65 (who defined the phase transition from period IV to V) the Viksø helmets should be placed at the end of NBA IV -or, more precisely, within the transition period to NBA V (Fig. 2).
In summary regarding the Scandinavian chronology: Most of the horned-helmet imagery of this region dates to traditional NBA V, 900-750 BC. However, an onset c. 1000 BC in late NBA IV is likely now supported by the AMS date of the Viksø helmet. A further factor is that the Nordic horned-helmet imagery coincides with most of the region's rich hoard depositions and rock art images, and also with the emergence of what we may term sanctuaries: in this case, open-air sacred places with institutionalised cults serving a larger area. The NBA V metalwork is distinguished by emblematic traits that can probably be interpreted as the brand of a new social regime backed by a mixture of political and religious power66.

Sardinia
Following Gonzalez67, the Uta-Abini group of bronzetti were produced 1200-950 BC and their deposition at sanctuaries probably extended beyond 950 BC into the EIA. This first bronzetti tradition was succeeded by the so-called Mediterraneizzante group, 950-750 BC, which shows much less attention to warriorhood, while the horned-helmet figure disappears. There are few, if any, 14 C dates to rely on. The head of a horned-helmet archer was found in a LBA twelfth/eleventh-century BC stratum at Funtana Coberta-Ballao68. Gear affiliated with the Uta-Abini bronzetti supports the suggested date, and the gamma-hilted dagger, pistilliform sword, votive sword, and so-called Philistine crown support the LBA-FBA dating of the Uta-Abini group, 68 Gonzalez 2012, 89;Manunza 2008, 250-257. which in its early appearance seems similar to so-called 'Sherden warriors' at Medinet Habu, Egypt, dated to 1176 BC69. Statue menhirs erected at south Corsican sanctuaries belong in the same category, even if such Bronze Age   (Olsen et al. 2011) typologically dated to NBA IV and NBA V. The modelled multiple plot shows NBA IV as distinct from NBA V, but separated by the transition period also identified by Olsen et al. 2011. Horizontal black lines indicate the identified periods: NBA IV is presented by the 14 C dates of samples AAR-8788 to AAR-9514, while the transition period NBA IV/V is presented by the 14 C dates from samples AAR-8112 to AAR-8111. Here the Viksø helmet's AMS date shows the best fit. NBA V is presented by 14 C dates from samples AAR-8786 to AAR-9518. Calibration was performed using the IntCal13 dataset (Reimer et al. 2013) and software OxCal 4.2 (Bronk Ramsey 1995).
menhirs are peculiar to Corsica. In a limited number of the Corsican cases, notably at Filitosa and Cauria, horns seem to have been attached to a cavity on each side of the stone warrior's head/helmet, often dated c. 1300-1100 BC and sometimes coupled to Sardinian warriors70.
The so-called 'Round-Eye Artist' is particularly associated with the giant Monte Prama sculptures of warrior archetypes. The Uta-Abini bronzetti, especially those made by the Round-Eye Artist, can plausibly be regarded, following Gonzalez71, as the prototypes of the Monte Prama sculptures, a development that can be dated to the ninth/ eighth centuries BC because the cist burials beneath were constructed 941-838 cal. BC (sampled on bone and other materials)72. Sardinian bronzetti of the Uta-Abini type occasionally occur outside the island of Sardinia on the Italian mainland in tombs, for instance at Vulci c. 800 BC73.
In summary, regarding the Sardinian chronology: The horned-helmet figure materialises prominently among the bronzetti 1200-750 BC; from c. 900 BC, it is additionally made in stone. The sequence of horned-helmet representations is consistent with long-term changes beginning c. 1200 BC as the Nuragic culture entered its final stage. The precise development is debatable, but may be described as follows: An altered demography and trends towards centralisation seem to be indicated and these trends may be visible in the now fewer and often enlarged Nuraghe settlements that commemorate the central Nuraghe towers as ancestral74. These hubs seem intricately connected with the central sanctuaries that were on the rise during this period, when Sardinia emerges as a crossroads for metal production and trade in the greater Mediterranean between the Levantine east and the Balearic and Iberian west. At the end of the ninth century BC, Sardinia saw the first Phoenician entrepȏts; these had been preceded by Levantine (Philistine or early Phoenician) quests for silver as early as 1100 BC75.

Iberia
The Iberian stone stelae form a long chronological line. The question that interests us here is the chronological position of the horned-helmet figure occurring on some of the warrior stelae. Differing interpretations76 may be attributable to difficulties posed by matching the gear on the images with extant object types. Additionally, object assemblages like that at Ría de Huelva include early as well as later types, with quite a wide 14 C range between 1100 and 900 BC77. Herzsprung and other round-shield types, also depicted on the stelae, have a long production and circulation time, beginning c. 1250/1200 BC and continuing post-900 BC78.
There is a consensus on major developments here, including placing anthropomorphic stelae in the later part of the sequence: the first stelae only depict the warrior's gear, but over time the warrior himself is allowed into the scene and gradually grows in size and centrality. Following Diaz-Guardamino and colleagues79, warrior stelae groups A, B and B+O develop simultaneously during the twelfth to tenth centuries BC; but only group A, with human figures depicted together with weaponry and accessories, continues into the ninth to eighth centuries BC (EIA). This approximate range is supported by a few stratified finds on stelae, and by 14 C sequences of mortuary monuments at sites with stelae (i. e. not directly by the stelae). A Huelva-type sword (1130-1050 BC) was also found near the anthropomorphic warrior stela at Almargen80. Within the total span of 1250/1200-750 BC, Harrison considers horned figures to be a historically late development. Dirk Brandherm81 likewise argues that the stelae with human figures, some of them horned, represent the final stage of Iberian stelae; based on object chronologies, he states that horned headgear was added to the repertoire no later than the end of the eleventh century BC. By comparison, Sebastián C. Pérez and Carolina López-Ruiz82 favour the ninth to eighth century BC for several of the anthropomorphic stelae with horned-helmet warriors, basing this on a number of new-found stelae with secure context83. Bronze figurines in Iberia are a very late phenomenon 800-500 BC, 'oriental' in style and lacking horns84.
In summary, regarding the Iberian chronology: Stelae with horned-helmet warriors are specific to southwestern Iberia. The first stelae with horned-helmet images may have appeared around 1200/1100 BC, but continued in production and use until c. 800-750 BC. Importantly, the sequence coincides with the emergence both of what might be seen as political landscapes in the region and intensified metal-led activities, these last in part tied to Phoenician activities from 1000 BC. Notably, the anthropomorphic warrior stelae of group A occur distributed on either side of the ore-rich Sierra Morena mountain range. Some sites with stelae boast stone hammers, for metal crushing, as well as slags85.

Comparative chronology according to current knowledge
Contemporaneity can be observed between the dates of horned-helmet representations in Scandinavia (1000-750 BC), Iberia (1200/1100-750 BC), and Sardinia (1200-750 BC). The appearance and evolution of these representations are contingent on societal change and, arguably, rising political forms of power in all three zones. From 1200/1100 BC, the focus of metal-trading had started moving westward in the Mediterranean Sea, highlighting Sardinia and the Iberian southwest, two zones that are naturally rich in metals. Scandinavia by comparison was completely dependent on imported copper.
In all three zones, the horned-helmet motif was longlived, probably with shifting meanings over time but with the 900-750 BC period especially formative. When considering this motif, current chronological data suggests that Sardinia and Iberia were especially connected 1200-1100 BC at the transition to the FBA and onwards. The Scandinavian zone was a latecomer, perhaps joining the network 1000 BC at the earliest, then more substantially from c. 900 BC. At the time Monte Prama was built, the Phoenicians were consolidating their silver-led trading activities by establishing entrepȏts throughout the western Mediterranean, with the Atlantic metal trade blooming corre-spondingly86. This is the period when Scandinavian and Sardinian imagery in particular show similarity.

Comparing appearances and media of representation
The comparative analysis rests on a semi-quantitative analysis of the figurative components in the three zones, including details of helmets, horns, and immediate surroundings. In total, 31 major figurative traits have been identified (Fig. 3, Tab. 2). These results are discussed and contextualised below through detailed qualitative comparison. Central features in the three zones have been evaluated in search of a shared or even systemic structure or carrying idea, as well as local foundations. Key aspects of the material appearance of the horned-helmet imagery, as well as its associations and the medium of representation, serve as a platform for further explorations into the characteristics and their associations.

Semi-quantitative analysis and result
The analytic procedure followed seeks to bring to the fore similarity and difference for the major figurative traits in all three geographical zones. Component variables comprise, first, material appearance -horns and helmet details, rendering of eyes, oversizing, twinness, phallic state, fellowships (groups), narratives/archetypes, weaponry, vehicles, animals/hybrids. Component variables also comprise, second, the media of representation -bronze figurines, stone sculpture, and images on stelae and rock. A simple quantitative scoring has been combined with observations stating whether a particular trait is absent (0) or recorded as merely present (1), well-known (2), or dominant (3). While this may lack absolute precision, it provides a visual overview of degrees of similarities and difference when comparing the three zones pairwise (Fig. 4A-C). Thereby, we gain insight into local as well as shared characteristics. It should be noted that the chosen medium of representation influences how horns, eyes, and warrior height are technically mediated by the artist to the onlooker. Thus stone and bronze are opposed from the outset. Some systemic traits are shared across the regions, notably oversize in whole bodies, body parts, and in weapons. A further systemic shared feature is that horned-helmet warriors seemingly form part of a community and a narrative, and that the horned-helmet warrior is represented as the central actor in this narrative. Various weapons, vehicles, and animals appear across the zones, with local preferences. Sword and round shield, however, are fully shared. (Fig. 4A) share miniature figurines in bronze as well as large figures made in/on stone. The way in which helmets and horns are represented is also similar. There are, furthermore, close similarities in how eyes are rendered as round and protruding, or drawn as a circle with a central circle or dot. The eye is often shown inside a recess in the face. Both areas have a preference for animal-headed ships. Among the 31 traits, 15 compare as dominant or present/well-known in both areas.

Scandinavia and Sardinia
Scandinavia and Iberia (Fig. 4B) share horned-helmet figures on stelae/rock, with notable similarity in how the horns are shown standing upright and turned. Other helmet types occur in the vicinity of the horned-helmet figure. Furthermore, horned-helmet figures occur mostly/ often as pairs (conceptualising the twin motif), and the spear, together with horse (chariot), is a favourite. Among the 31 traits, 12 compare as dominant or present/wellknown in both areas. (Fig. 4C) mostly share overarching features that glue all three zones together. Archery is a favourite in both zones. In this case, the analytic outcome has been impacted by the lack of bronze miniatures in Iberia and lack of stelae in Bronze Age Sardinia87. Among the 31 traits, nine compare as dominant or present/wellknown in both areas.

Sardinia and Iberia
The analytic result demonstrates patterned similarity and difference between the three zones with horned-helmet imagery. Observed interrelationships are visualised as a network (Fig. 4D), serving to examine the degree of connectivity between the three zones' imagery. It is evident that the similarity between Scandinavia and Sardinia is, 87 Chalcolithic menhirs depicting horned headdress and weapons are well known https://www.menhirmuseum.it/fine-del-mondo-deimegaliti. overall, strong. However, the Scandinavian rock carvings share common features especially with the Iberian stelae. Below, the matrix expressed in Figure 4 is elaborated by an in-depth comparative analysis contextualising the observations. A scalar dialectic has been revealed, which calls for further analysis and explanation.

Horned-helmet warriors among other archetypes in an ideal community
In all three zones, the distinct appearance of the hornedhelmet warriors communicates exclusivity, above all through the horns, but also through other traits. The appar-ent gender of our figure is male, as expressed sometimes by phallic imagery (i. e. intersecting with biological sex) as well as by associated material culture depicted alongside the anthropomorphs on stelae and rock panels. Within and across the zones, the horned-helmet figures refer not only to one another, but also to a wider community.
The 40 Scandinavian horned-helmet warriors reside within a wider community of anthropomorphic figures, both in bronze and on rock, including other males without horned insignia, females, and smaller, more ordinary-looking figures -all affiliated with the perpetual nature of the solar cycle indicated by circular imagery. A specific corpus of weapons, symbols, and vehicles is added.
Similarly, in Iberia, 41 horned-helmet figures are identifiable on warrior stelae in a total record of 140 stelae so far. In addition to horned-helmet warriors, the anthro-  crowd of 29 males, accompanied by 16 Nuraghe models of limestone90. The bronzetti in particular represent a rich world of several archetypal identities, signified through specific material appearances -female and male genders, children, and subdivisions of warrior males -along with a standard panoply of objects and vehicles for transport. Monte Prama, by comparison, depicts a world of exclusively male archetypes, already known en miniature in bronze, and all of them participants in one or several interrelated narratives.
Although the number of horned representations per region differs, with the largest number of specimens in Sardinia (Tab. 2), it is striking that in all three zones, the horned-helmet warriors stand out within a population of female or male companions. Both locally within each zone and transversely across them, the horns signify the potency of the helmet wearer, the quintessential warrior. In addition, there are vehicles for transport, chariots or ships, various kinds of gear for war, and several species of animals. Altogether, it seems we are presented with an ideal society composed of archetypes91. Both within and across zones, the horned-helmet figures refer not only to each other, but also to a community of human-like and animal beings, as well as a familiar panoply of objects. The Sardinian community is the most complex and varied of the three cases of an archetypal narrative.

Helmets, weaponry, and other items
In the medium of bronze, helmet appearance is strikingly similar in Sardinia and Scandinavia, with a similar variation range in terms of length, turn, and the position of the horns on the helmet. Frequently occurring are short,  stubby horns with a forward cline close to the head, long horns standing erect, and the ends of horns sometimes sealed with distinct knobs. Stubby, forward-pointing horns occur on several of the Sardinian bronzetti and on the Scanian Fogdarp twins. Sardinia has the largest variation range of the three zones, including unique versions with longhorns pointing in different directions (Fig. 5). The Iberian stelae and the Tanum rock imagery of horned creatures are not devoid of similarity, however: horns always stand erect and may turn in various directions, and their more stereotypical appearance seems to have been dictated by the stone medium rather than stylistic preference. It is notable that the combination of crest and horns on the Viksø helmets matches the Sardinian bronzetti helmets92 (Figs 3; 5; 7). The Sardinian helmets of Uta-Abini style, which usually incorporate horns, sometimes supplement the horns with special effects that point forwards or backwards. This compares with bird feathers inserted on the Viksø helmets on either side of the crest93. Turned horns occur across all three zones.
Body aesthetics are priorities in all three zones, although only in Iberia are the warrior's grooming tools depicted in addition to jewellery and even weights and lyres. While all weapon types are associated with the horned-helmet warriors, the sword is ubiquitous across all three zones. The extra-large battle-axe is seemingly standard gear for the figurine Nordic twins; on the rock carvings, round shield and spear are frequent in addition, and even archery is mastered by the horned warrior. This matches very well with Sardinia and Iberia, although in those two regions the imagery of archery and archers is much more frequent than in Scandinavia. The weaponry of the LBA world is often classifiable into types of supraregional coverage, although localised types and preferences are also on the agenda.  Armour and leggings are common in Iberia and Sardinia, but evidently absent in Scandinavia94. On rock, the warriors appear to be naked, and now and again phallic. The latter feature sometimes also appears on Iberian stelae to indicate the sex of the horned figure, e. g. Esparagosa de Lares II, Extremadura95 (see Fig. 3).
The ship is conspicuously absent from the Iberian representations, which favour chariots and horses. In Sardinia, it is the horse that is absent; instead, the 146 bronzetti boats -navicelle -often have bull-or deer-shaped sterns, sometimes reinforced by birds (Fig. 6)96. This matches the ever-present horse-prowed ship in Scandinavia, where a swan or monstrous beings sometimes substitute the horse, as exemplified by the two ships (one for each twin) depicted on the Viksø helmets97. Overall, the pre-eminence of the bronzetti boats underlines the sea-going domain in Nuraghe society, comparable to the numerous ship carvings in maritime Scandinavia (where, however, chariots also occur on rock)98. The Nordic materialisations of the twins are, as mentioned, almost inevitably associated with a horse-or swan-pulled ship.

Twin or double representations
The iconic Nordic identical twins appear to be deeply entrenched in locally or regionally rooted cosmology and beliefs99. It is thought-provoking, however, that doubles or mirror-images of warriors with and without horned helmets are depicted in all three zones. Representation in doubles (four eyes, four arms, and a double-up of weaponry) occurs among the Sardinian bronzetti100 (Fig. 3) and is also often found on Iberian stelae, although in neither region as consistently as in Scandinavia. There, even rock carvings highlight the horned twins, but sometimes also depict what look like small warbands of horned warriors fighting bird-faced warriors (Fossum, Tanum SHFA101 255:1)102. This latter appearance is interesting because the bird-like beaked faces or masks call to mind the horned Viksø helmets, which have a crest as well as a frontal peregrine-like beak103. From these depictions, supernatural in disposition, we may infer mythical stories of amiable or hostile connections between classes of particular warriors.
Distinct therianthropic traits are visible among the Scandinavian depictions and depositions. This could resonate with the animistic shape-shifting components of the sun-cycle NBA religion104, which differs from the Sar-  dinian and Iberian cases. As a result, the horned warrior twins of the North can be found in disguises that deviate radically from their anthropomorphic appearance.

From mini in bronze to maxi in stone: gigantisation
Common to both Sardinian and Scandinavian horned-helmet imagery is the occurrence of bronze figurines along with translations into stone/rock. Both bronze and rock, moreover, show elements of aggrandisement. In the Tanum rock panels, the entire warrior figure sometimes appears in giant format, in all his might105. This mighty creature is often shown by oversized feet, hands, or calves, in addition to enlarged weaponry (e. g. Bro Utmark 3 at Tanum: SHFA)106. In the Scandinavian context, the choice between metal and rock is impacted by differing geologies in the north and south of the NBA hotspot area. In Sardinia it should be taken into account that Monte Prama is archaeologically unique so far. It is nonetheless striking that, in both zones, miniature bronze representations are connected with corresponding larger presentations in stone.
Sardinia and Scandinavia, then, share an interest in bronze miniatures suitable for votive offerings. Some of these figurines are also quite similar across both regions in select stylistic features, size and -it seems -innate idea. The statuettes in bronze seem en miniature to conceptualise giant beings. This gigantisation in two modes 105 See Ling 2008, figs 8,30;8,33;10,20-10,22;11,3;12,6;11,3. 106 Ling/Bertilsson 1994. https://www.shfa.se/ of representation, in bronze and stone, follows partly parallel tracks whereby the full-blown size in or on stone ultimately materialises at a particular point in time. The stone medium can accommodate the giants in perceived actual size -in entirety, or through chosen body parts. Enlarged or distinct hand signs, with four fingers tightly pressed together and kept separate from the accentuated thumb, is a widespread LBA-EIA symbol (of divine presence?). This symbol recurs both on the Grevensvaenge figurines and on several of the Sardinian bronzetti and on S. Scandinavian rock carved slabs -in one case forming part of a temple-like construction107.
Oversized round eyes are another aggrandising trait in the bronze miniatures that recurs in both regions, with the eye rendered either as protruding or encircled. A case in point is the bronzetti produced by the Round-Eye Artist, who designed a major group among the Uta-Abini bronzetti in Sardinia and seems to have inspired the Monte Prama sculptures (Fig. 7)108. Similarity is particularly salient when the recessed circular eyes with a dot or inner circle depicted on the Grevensvaenge twins are compared with those on the giant warriors of Monte Prama. Do these accentuated eyes signify supernatural sight? If so, they could be thought of as the eyes of divine creatures, as interestingly suggested by Joakim Goldhahn in a Nordic context109. Miniature-making and simplification enable a population to understand and control both the items and what they represent110. Similarly, aggrandisement can visualise what is beyond human control -or beyond the  control of ordinary human beings. Overall, the likeness between Sardinian and Scandinavian imaging is striking.
In Iberia, the horned-helmet figure is depicted only on stelae, most of which are 130-150 cm tall, which means that they depict human-like figures at less than normal size111. Oversized body parts reappear nonetheless. The shape of the Iberian horns varies in a manner also found on the Tanum rock carvings. Big hands with spread fingers and large feet are also similar, and the horned-helmet figure is shown significantly larger than other human-like beings, including his twin. Thus, while the aggrandising tendencies are not systematically present in Iberia or represented by the accentuated calves often seen in Scandinavia, weapons do occur in aggrandised form, notably as spears of exaggerated length (Fig. 8).
In partial conclusion, the above comparison reveals similar traits in appearance, associations, scenes represented, and medium of representation. This is consistent with an indication that directional movements underlie the observed resemblance. While general similarities are revealed, likeness also resides in small details. Interestingly, the imagery embeds ambiguity, in that humanness and otherworldliness are depicted intertwined. Taken together, the observed congruence is too great to be gener-111 As for example Harrison 2004, fig 3,2. ated purely from local processes or randomly from multidirectional culture flows in a phase of globalisation112. The latter scenario would likely show as a geographically scattered dispersal, rather than a detached triple distribution with a western cline (cf. Fig. 1). Distinct local traits nevertheless exist in each zone, entrenched in local tradition.

Comparing the sacred places of horned-helmet warriors and associates
We have identified horned-helmet imagery belonging within an array of archetypes that was probably well known to a wide public. The appearance of these images is anthropomorphic, rendered divine. Below we will show that horned-helmet imagery in all three zones is tied to sanctified places exhibiting mortuary and commemorative characteristics. As expected, local trends materialise strongly in these ritualised contexts, but Scandinavia and Sardinia in particular share a structural similarity that is interesting in light of the material likenesses revealed in the above.

Scandinavia
The Vestrup Mark razor, depicting the characteristic ensemble led by the horned-helmet warrior twins, stems from a burial (cf. Fig. 3)113. This establishes a connection between the mortuary domain and the wetland depositions that, notably, include the Viksø helmets and the Grevensvaenge archetypal setup of male and female figurines. In recent years, a number of special dry places have emerged dating to c. 1000/900-750 BC. Fogdarp exemplifies this innovation in place: the two horned male and two female heads on yokes were deposited with lurs and horse gear in elevated dry terrain near water114.
On the one hand, these places were used ritually, possibly relating to venerations of the sun, setting in motion the figurines of horned twins, their entourage, and/or affiliated gear, normally sized or oversized. Before deposition, these items may have been presented in ceremonial processions, perhaps as a way to connect with and venerate godlike beings or imagined ancestors from a distant past115. On the other hand, mortuary or commemorative activities were probably interwoven with the procession. Such sites may deserve the label 'sanctuary', 'sacred land-113 Ahlqvist 2020b. 114 Larsson 2017; Lindblad 2019. 115 Kaul 1998, 20-30;cf. Whitley 1995, 13-18. scape', or 'ceremonial gathering site'116. The Tanum rock panels may be understood in a similar light117.
These sacred sites attracted extraordinary depositions of gold and bronze items, as well as other ritual activities involving few or several people. Generally, the rich wetland depositions of NBA V should be understood as integrated parts of particular sacred landscapes, notably comprising ceremonial activities reflected in multiple fire pits118. The Mariesminde hoard (Funen) exemplifies such a linkage between wet deposition and fire pit rows nearby. The metaphorical twins are conceptually present as golden bowls with handles shaped like the horned sun-horse, all deposited inside a bronze cauldron adorned with the sunbird-ship motif119. Such offerings and affiliated rituals likely refer to the horned-helmet warrior twins, often represented by their paired gear, as well as respectively to their broader community of male and female companions through their markers. Borgbjerg Banke (west Sealand)120, Fårdal (central Jutland), and Voldtofte (southwest Funen) are prominent sacred landscapes and special sites for cult activities, and perhaps should even be thought of as central sanctuaries appearing around the time of the horned-helmet imagery. Funerary or commemorative rites are rather distinct at Fårdal and Voldtofte121.
Five km from the coast at the sacred place of Voldtofte, pairs and collections of gold ornaments -perhaps linked to the horned-helmet twins and associates pars pro totowere deposited on the so-called Gold Mound presumably worshipping a claimed descendant buried there in the midst of other dynastic mounds122. Rich ritual depositions of gold and bronze objects furthermore mark the landscape surrounding the Voldtofte site. The Lusehøj mound pinpoints the uppermost social stratum that such lavish worship may have targeted. Two cremation graves of prominent males were retrieved: a bronze-adorned wagon grave, and another grave centred on an imported bronze cauldron containing cremated bones and a series of items in gold, bronze, and amber carefully wrapped in cloth123. The tight cluster of giant mounds at Voldtofte are statements of power that link up with the nearby wealthy  settlement at Kirkebjerget, where swords, lurs, and ornaments were manufactured and where red-painted clay lining for walls was retrieved124. The Voldtofte rulers evidently networked with metal-trading partners both near and far in the period 1000-750 BC.
In sum, the traditional emphasis on the medium of water in ritual depositions and cults has a chthonic ambience, hinting that underground water was the imagined place of afterlife for particular creatures of the past125. Numerous outstanding objects, often in pairs, ended up in wetlands. It emerges that in NBA V an ancestral tradition was renewed by further institutionalisation, namely major cults on dry land, which seem to maintain a mortuary connotation. This may be termed a tomb or ancestor cult126. This Scandinavian development, moreover, resonates with what we can extract from the Sardinian archaeology.

Sardinia
Bronzetti in the form of anthropomorphs and zoomorphs were produced at the Sardinian sanctuaries and exhibited there as votive offerings at monumental sacred wells (pozzi sacri). Fixed in lead, bronzetti were placed in groups along the dromos of the well that led underground. The subterranean water that sourced these wells may point to a connection with chthonic forces127. Perhaps each sacred well was thought of as a monumental temple accommodating powerful ancestors. Bronzetti offerings would then be a way to connect with and venerate these imagined ancestors of a past age128. The models of nuraghi towers located in the middle of the Nuragic villages of the FBA-EIA would similarly become objects of commemoration and collective memory, as reminders of a mighty past129.
It may well be that when Monte Prama was built c. 900 BC, this mortuary connotation was maintained: the warrior sculptures were erected on top of the cist graves130 as if to protect and honour the ancestral dead with a divine or semidivine presence in a traditionalising setting of Nuraghe 'towers'. The heroön character of the Monte Prama sanctuary is unique in Sardinia, and its coastal position, near the Phoenician entrepȏt of Tharros at the tip of the Sinis peninsula, points not only to a further institutionalisation of ancestral cults, but also to an exogenous impact, given the easy access from the sea131.

Iberia
The warrior stelae were erected in densely settled LBA-EIA landscapes, with small stelae groups across a region. There were fortified hillforts, with conspicuous ritual depositions made in the same landscapes132. A few warrior stelae have an archaeologically attested mortuary affiliation, which can be generalised into assuming that they were initially grave markers and thereafter were commemorated in a manner difficult to specify due to sparse information about primary contexts. It is likely that at least some stelae were originally associated with burial mounds133. A stela at Cortijo de la Reina (Andalusia) was found in a ditch covering an LBA urn134, and the stela at Gomes Aires (Portugal) reportedly covered a cremation pit135.
Consistent with most interpretations, we suggest that the stelae were raised to honour special male deceased, likely an active warrior, whose body was presented on the stone slab together with a collection of his gear. The archetypal character both of each individual element and of the group is striking, as is the way the main character seems to have been praised by the use of simple codes of supreme warriorhood136. This paper rephrases some of these codes as aggrandisement, or gigantisation. Diaz-Guardamino and colleagues137 emphasise the commemorative role and the mortuary dimension of the warrior stelae in a proximate landscape with settlements, burial mounds, droveways, fords, and water resources. In this setting of the everyday, stelae would have been important as durable and visible landmarks. Weapon deposition and warrior imagery may, as in Scandinavia, have had interchangeable meanings related to the element of water138. Unlike Sardinia and Scandinavia, however, no sanctuaries have so far been retrieved in southwest Iberia prior to the appearance of sanctuaries in Phoenician entrepȏts in the eighth and seventh centuries BC in the EIA139. The long-term production of stelae including aggrandising elements and special gear may suggest ongoing ancestral commemoration or even heroisation among peers, but perhaps not institutionalised cults as in Scandinavia and Sardinia.
In brief: Each of the three cases demonstrates ritualisation aligning with local practices and traditional beliefs tied to particular local landscapes. The pictured weaponry and other gear are well known from burials and hoards, both locally and in the LBA supraregion. Sun worship interfused with animistic notions seems to be a Scandinavian speciality. There are, at the same time, broad correspondences across the three ritualised contexts, which may indicate that ideas about cults, sanctuaries, and narratives moved along with material exchanges and entered local environments from the outside. An underlying political drive emerges still more persistently. Sardinia and Scandinavia in particular share exhibition and deposition of figurines and associated gear in dry as well as wet settings, and both seem to undergo a development from deeply anchored ancestral veneration to institutionalised cults of geographically broader reach. This may have progressed in tandem with local political processes. This celebrated warriorhood and ample depositions of arms points to a professionalised fighting force, conflict and violence in Final Bronze Age Europe, as several reports indicate140.

Indigenous roots, innovation, and politicisation
Our three zones adopt, invent, or reinvent the horned figure -unlike other regions at this time. In asking the question 'why', it is relevant at this point to outline the local traditions and how they evolved prior to the appearance of the horned anthropomorphs. In general terms, the horned armed figure signals both bellicosity and a preoccupation with bulls/cattle. All three of these regions thrived on animal husbandry among other economic niches, and they flagged warlike material culture and values. However, professionalised warriorhood and mixed economies of agriculture and husbandry were universal across much of LBA Europe. Local preferences and rooted tradition may nevertheless be a factor in the decision to embrace the horned-helmet imagery. Which relics of the past in the three zones might have facilitated the inclusion of the horns?

Scandinavia
Over time, Nordic Bronze Age tradition underwent change roughly in accordance with the rhythms of those parts of Europe that were delivering metals to the North in exchange for amber141. The cyclical solar framework of the belief system in this region, with Neolithic roots, is innately resilient, and thanks to Flemming Kaul's detailed studies142 and several other contributions is well under-stood143. The tripartite cosmological scheme remained fixed. The gradual implementation of cremation, c. 1400-1100 BC, does not seem to have altered belief in the sun cycle, but rather to have reinforced belief in its mortuary significance, now shared by a broader group of people than previously. In Kaul's interpretation, the sun cycle was believed to require assistance from a collegium of animal and human-like helpers, who pulled the sun nightly through the watery underworld into the sky-covered daylight, while they underwent bodily transformations along the way144. It is possible that people understood their own life/death cycle in a parallel manner throughout this long period145, and that burials and depositions retained an ancestral and commemorative core.
The twins and other figures leading the sun's journey were likely paramount throughout the Nordic Bronze Age. They occur, implicitly for the most part, in the numerous depositions of multiple or paired objects in wetlands, pars pro toto in the sense that these godlike characters are usually not rendered present as persons but imagined or performed by human deputies (shamans/priests, community heads). For this reason the human ritual actions, social obligations, and political strategies behind the depositions should not be underestimated146. During key periods of NBA II and NBA V, this principle of imagined or performed presence during depositional acts becomes reinforced, with the sacred agents themselves emerging 'personified', that is, conceptualised in the form of bronze figurines or depicted on stone as persons. In NBA II a few person-like beings occur, notably in the hieros gamos scene on a stone slab at the Sagaholm monumental mound (Småland)147 and with the twin male figurines in the Stockhult deposition (Scania twins' hats, but despite small holes in the brim, a horned reconstruction is doubtful. Horned helmets are absent in NBA II. However, both the Hagendrup headdress (Fig. 9) and the Wismar drinking horn in bronze149 may indicate a partiality towards horned creatures, which might help to explain the later adoption of innovative horned-helmet imagery from abroad.
This was a twofold innovation dating around the transition to NBA V, c.1000-900 BC. Firstly, we see a new embodiment of the twins, now wearing horned helmets and staged within the archetypal community of anthropomorphic beings and their zoomorphic translations. These are now conceptualised as 'gigantic', whether rendered as miniatures in bronze or blown up much larger on rock. Secondly, special places of commemoration now emerge (see above), in which the sun-cycle narrative merges with large-scale mortuary and commemorative activities, often involving gear of gold and bronze of unprecedented flamboyance. Both these instances may well have been motivated by political ambition for control, as evident especially at Voldtofte.

Sardinia
The changes undergone by the Bronze Age Nuragic tradition were sensitive to the rhythm of its neighbours. Especially after 1300 BC, local metalworking developed a high level of sophistication that was dependent on both its own and imported metal sources150. As in Scandinavia, the belief system appears to have been resilient into the long term. The tradition-bound obsession with cattle horns is archaeologically conspicuous. Indeed, Sardinia is often understood specifically in terms of bulls' imagery, creatures around which the religion pivoted151, as amply expressed in the rock-cut bucrania that frequently adorn the Neolithic tombs. This tomb imagery in stone may have had multiple functions and meanings152, even if the mortuary setting points to an ancestral coupling. Cattle were also central to the Nuragic economy153. For Lilliu, Nuragic society was strictly embedded in pastoralism, as expressed in the 'king-shepherd' title he gave to the so-called Capotribu of the bronzetti at Uta-Abini154. Horned animals including bulls, stags, and rams are frequent in the Uta-Abini group of bronzetti; these probably embody a reference to an ideal society of the past, predating the social changes that set in around 1200 BC.
At this time, the warrior bronzetti with horned metal helmets materialise on the scene. Their distinctly humanised embodiment en miniature is a completely new addition to Sardinian metalwork production, though consistent with rooted tradition. One might speculate that a proximate inspiration for this turn could perhaps have been Sardinian military troops with their horned caps. Although no such horned headgear has been preserved, the pharaonic imagery at Medinet Habu (1165 BC) holds similar headgear. No certain evidence however exists that connects those warriors with Sardinia. The south Corsican anthropomorphic menhirs may point in the direction of a regionally shared tradition of horned caps among warriors and leaders155. Such 'Sherden' warriors may have inspired the votive bronzetti, which despite their small size may have been perceived as gigantic (see above). Oxhide ingots were traded into Sardinia from Cyprus, so Cypriot horned figurines like those from Enkomi (LC III) could have been a parallel source of inspiration156.
The grandiose format of armed males at Monte Prama indicates a consolidation of institutionalised cults c. 900 BC and calls to mind colossal figures in the Near East and the Levant. The Monte Prama development of ancestral commemoration may also tie in with Levantine activities along the western coasts of the island157. Although emerging in negotiation with local tradition, the de facto gigantisation of entire bodies in stone seems in tune with cults of divinities, rulers, or special ancestors.

Iberia
The warrior stelae here belong to the Atlantic-West Mediterranean Bronze Age region. The local antecedents are Neolithic anthropomorphic portable idols and menhirs, as well as earlier Bronze Age stelae depicting weaponry in much the same way as the earliest series of warrior stelae158. Hence the chosen medium for the large group of Iberian later Bronze Age stelae merely continues, or rather reinvents, a rooted tradition for commemoration through the erection of stone memorials in the landscape.
The horned-helmet figure, however, is an outsider to the region. Its first appearance was likely due to LBA connections with Sardinia -perhaps fleeing military units in the course of the twelfth century BC, or brought by trading partners. The subsequent Phoenician expansion in the west could have further reinforced the significance and centralised position of the horned-helmet motif, as well as its aggrandising effects, which are consistent with the mortuary or commemorative dimension noted by several authors. Overall, the Iberian warrior stelae are embedded in a strong local tradition, while the horned-helmet warrior and his companions are intruding characters, whose appropriation locally may connect to ongoing territorialisation and control of copper and other minerals, notably in Sierra Morena, which attracted stelae on the settled plains to either side159.

Summarising discussion
The animated headgear of the horned helmet advertises the personal muscle of the wearer, and perhaps even cohesion among a group of peers. This is apparent in all three of our zones. Warfare and warriorhood, however, do not suffice as explanations. In addition, local traits pre-exist in the three zones that help to explain the adoption of horned-helmet imagery. The imagery appears self-consciously Nordic, Sardinian, and Iberian, if only because innovative exogenous traits were merged into a syncretic product suiting local culture, beliefs, and political climate. Such a reinvention of tradition may be associated with crisis or post-crisis consolidation of a new regime160. Even so, of the three zones, the Sardinian development has the clearest local foundation, and it may well be the main source of the other two zones' preoccupation with the horned-helmet warrior and novel ideas of gigantisation. The link between Sardinia and Scandinavia seems especially clear-cut, reinforced by comparable political processes, in which cults played a role.
The horned symbol of Near Eastern origin likely appeared attractive to elites in need of legitimisation. Horns attached to the head were associated with divinity, rulership, or both; the motif underlined mastery both of war and of chthonic powers161. Key meanings -including martiality, exclusivity, superpowers, authority, and divine descent -seemingly diffused into Sardinia, Iberia, and Scandinavia. Ideas of a glorious past with horned warriors, gods, or rulers may have circulated in ways that made sense locally as a unifying collective memory, aligning with cultural tradition in each zone.
The ambiguous status of the horned-helmet figure with his entourage -not quite human, not quite divinemay perhaps point towards some form of hero cult. Founding ancestors may over time have been elevated to a cult of heroes, as argued by Kristiansen and Larsson162. However, a hero cult in the Greek sense is difficult to apply, even if attached to mortal male warriors believed to dwell underground and to be able to transcend worlds owing to semidivine descent163. In Greece, hero cults per se did not gain ground until the eighth/seventh century BC. Coinciding as they did with the very beginning of Greek expansion in the western Mediterranean, this periodisation seems too late to have influenced the developments described. Whitley's164 broader 'ancestor-tomb cult' is a better fit: it is not restricted to Greece, and encompasses commemorations of the long-gone or recent dead, posthumously heroised to establish a genealogy of divine origins or territorial rights. Post-Mycenaean examples of ancestor-tomb cult notably include the Toumba heroön at Lefkandi of the tenth century BC, which concurs with the development witnessed in the three zones.

Conclusion
The above analysis has demonstrated that horns were used emblematically in Sardinia, Iberia, and Scandinavia to visualise an exclusive group of anthropomorphised warlike beings whose significance was tied to commemorative or mortuary rites, sites, and beliefs, in tandem with political trends. This is true for all three of the zones investigated. Each case portrays a localised version of a narrative intended for collective sharing about an archetypal community including human-like beings, their animal helpers, vehicles, and gear relating to war as well as peace. The imagery of very particular warriors wearing horned insignia relates on the one hand to the transfer of novel beliefs involving embodied gigantisation and on the other hand to local control of metals that were still in high demand. The three zones stand out as metal-rich, either through natural resources or through trading.
Otherworldly products can be strategically designed as support for an ongoing political process aiming to legitimise and consolidate power165 and to unite rather than separate; they can be a statement of deep anchorage in situations where it was convenient to draw on the past to legitimise a changing present. It may be that our three cases can be boiled down to political domains in need of legitimisation through claimed genealogical relations to the archetypal narrative. The horned figure was appropriated very selectively, together with its narrated values of exclusivity, gigantisation, and community. The pasts of the three zones give hints of receptiveness to such a novel package in conjunction with local tradition.
These correspondences in horned-helmet imagery and the transfer between three separate zones with a distinct western cline refute one-sided explanations that privilege local processes or random culture flows. Similarities have been shown to occur on several levels, from minuscule details to the content of ideas and coinciding with politico-religious processes. The analysis has revealed a distinct core of similarity, and thus connectedness, despite long distances of transportation. Given the particular geographical spread, the most plausible link between the three zones is directional movements through a western maritime route. Association with metal-trading post-1200/1100 BC is consistent with recent re-search166. The Scandinavian addendum to this network from c. 1000-900 BC coincides with the metal-led Phoenician expansion and consolidation in the west. The Phoenician capacity for sea travel and trading should be kept in mind167 although of course other actors such as the Scandinavians and Sardinians could have contributed168. A Mediterranean-Atlantic sea route emerges; the otherwise flourishing transalpine trade route seems to have been inactive in disseminating the image of the horned warrior hero. In this connection, it is significant that large quantities of Baltic amber reached Sardinia169 and were transported along the western sea route, the transalpine route, or both. Overall, our findings tally with recent reviews of the Bronze Age as a globalisation-like assemblage of multiple communities, glued together by a desire for, and dependence on, coveted metals.