The village of Bastar, located near the Tujani area, preserves an extraordinary find. Two ancient helmets, one Illyrian and the other Corinthian, were found in 1955, during agricultural work. Both in a nearby burial site, and today they are also located nearby in the Tirana Archaeological Museum.

They were found in an area called Qytezë, on a hill in Middle Bastar. Archaeologist Adem Bunguri says that the two helmets from the 6th century BC belonged to princes or high commanders, since not everyone could wear them. They were very expensive, beautifully crafted and only very high-ranking people wore them. But the surprise that remains unsolved to this day is why two helmets, one Illyrian and the other Corinthian, are next to each other. How could two enemies be buried next to each other? What could have happened? While the Illyrian helmet is more regular, the Corinthian one has a dent near the eye and to this day this mark does not seem to have been touched up even by restoration. Did the same prince have them? Was there a duel, and the two princes were buried nearby? The paradox is that the location of the helmets is in Parthian territory.

Hasan Ceka says that in the 4th century BC, a king of the Paionians is called by the name Bastar. The Paionians were an Illyrian tribe in North Macedonia, but how did the name Bastar arrive here in this territory of the Parthians? The king of the Paionians, Bastar, also minted his coin with the Illyrian helmet. Bastar means hut, settlement but also noble (Indo-European language). Another variant is that this king of the Paionians had both of these helmets with him, which were very valuable, and he may have lost his life here and was buried with them, and the city took his name. Two helmets, two tribes, one name Bastar. This entire area remains an enigma, as do the helmets in the Museum, which have no explanation.

This article is part of the Tirana Heritage Routes, a project by DMO ALBANIA, in the framework of the BOOST Balkans program, implemented by ALDA and consortia, funded by AFD France