A two-and-a-half-millennium-old gold helmet, stolen from a Dutch museum in a brazen armed heist just over a year ago, has been recovered. The Gold Helmet of Coțofenești, a 2,500-year-old masterpiece of Dacian goldsmithing valued at €5.85 million (approximately $6.3 million or about Rs 60 crore), is heading home to Romania after Dutch authorities unveiled it under heavy security in Assen on April 2.The rare artefact, one of Romania’s most-prized national treasures, had been on temporary loan to the Drents Museum when armed thieves blasted their way in, smashed display cases, and made off with the helmet and three gold bracelets.INTERPOL (International Criminal Police Organisation) announced on X the successful recovery, crediting swift reporting by Dutch police and seamless international cooperation for cracking the case. Two of the three stolen Dacian gold bracelets were also recovered following a plea deal with suspects. One bracelet remains missing and investigations continue.The helmet features intricate engravings, including large stylised eyes on the front, mythical animals, and ritual or warrior scenes. Made of electrum (a natural gold-silver-copper alloy with approximately 76% gold content), it weighs around 726 to 770 grams.Experts, however, describe the artefact as culturally priceless and of inestimable historical value, representing a unique masterpiece of pre-Roman Geto-Dacian goldsmithing from around 450 to 400 BC.The helmet was discovered in the 1920s in Coțofenești village, Romania, and is normally housed in Bucharest’s National History Museum. It was on temporary loan to the Drents Museum for the exhibition ‘Dacia: Empire of Gold and Silver’ when armed thieves blasted through a door using explosives or fireworks, smashed display cases, and stole the helmet along with three gold bracelets.Following swift reporting by Dutch police, the items were immediately listed in INTERPOL’s Stolen Works of Art Database, which contains over 58,000 records of stolen cultural property. The database is accessible to law enforcement, museums, art dealers, and the public via the ID-Art mobile app.The helmet suffered only minor damage, a small dent, and is expected to be fully restored. Romanian officials have welcomed the recovery, stating that the treasures will soon return home to the National History Museum in Bucharest.