[Regia-NA] Raised helmets & conspiracy theories

[list-regia-na@lig.net]

OK, first I'll state my position: I do not believe the St. Wenceslaus helmet is 
authentic. There is no doubt in my mind that it is a medieval helmet, but I do 
not accept the claim that it actually belonged to St. Wenceslaus, or believe 
the date attributed to it (late 10th century).
Fact- All 10th century European sources outside the sphere of Mediterannean 
influence depict spangenhelms.

Fact- The vast majority of 11th century sources (French, English, Scandinavian) 
depict spangenhelms, even on the heads of kings. Pictoral sources upheld as 
evidence of early one-piece helmets are often stylized or simplified to the 
point of being dismissable.

Fact- There are only two raised conical nasal helmets of Western/Central 
European origin: Olmutz and Wenceslaus. Olmutz is generally accepted to be from 
around 1100.

Fact- the primary reason one-piece helmets are believed by some scholars to be 
in use in Western/Central Europe before the 1st Crusade is because of the 
dating for the Wenceslaus Helmet.

My theory: The Wenceslaus helmet is from around 1100. It never belonged to St. 
Wenceslaus. The Prague Cathedral presented it as a relic long after his death 
to turn the church into a pilgrimage site (relics=pligrims=revenue & prestige).

My evidence? None :)

Looking here:
http://www.catholic.org/saints/saint.php?saint_id=2040

It is stated that St. Wenceslaus was considered a martyr and a saint almost 
immediately after his death, but no actual date is given for his canonization. 
Also, it states that his remains were interred at the Prague Cathedral, but 
doesn't mention his helmet or hauberk.

So, I'm wondering if anyone can tell me:

A) When Wenceslaus was officially declared a saint by Rome? If it was at a time 
when conical raised helmets were in common use (say around 1075-1150), this 
would lend credential to my theory.

B) When the earliest recorded mention of the helmet as a relic is? I don't know 
if churches kept inventories, or if there were Czech chroniclers of the same 
sort you find in England or France, but this sort of relic might appear in some 
early documents.

Just thought I'd throw this out there for discussion 

~Wil