The Mycenaean Greeks used two types of shields: the 'figure-of-eight' shield and a rectangular 'tower' shield. During the 14th-13th century BC, the Sards or Shardana, working as mercenaries for the Egyptian pharaoh Ramses II, utilized either large or small round shields against the Hittites. Many had a strap called a guige that allowed it to be slung over the user's back when not in use or on horseback. Heavy troops might be equipped with robust shields that could cover most of the body. Lightly armored warriors relying on speed and surprise would generally carry light shields ( pelte) that were either small or thin. The shield was used to make the Greek Phalanx formation. Many surviving examples of metal shields are generally felt to be ceremonial rather than practical, for example the Yetholm-type shields of the Bronze Age or the Iron Age Battersea shield. Sometimes shields were made of metal, but wood or animal hide construction was much more common wicker and even turtle shells have been used. Shields have varied greatly in construction over time and place. The oldest form of shield was a protection device designed to block attacks by hand weapons, such as swords, axes and maces, or ranged weapon sling-stones and arrows. Left hoplite's shield has a curtain which serves as a protection from arrows. Shields are also sometimes mounted on vehicle-mounted weapons to protect the operator. The modern term usually refers to a device that is held in the hand or attached to the arm, as opposed to an armored suit or a bullet-proof vest. In the 20th and 21st century, shields have been used by military and police units that specialize in anti-terrorist actions, hostage rescue, riot control and siege-breaking. In the 18th century, for example, Scottish Highland fighters liked to wield small shields (known as a targe), and as late as the 19th century, some non-industrialized peoples employed them (such as Zulu warriors) when waging war. Even after the introduction of gunpowder and firearms to the battlefield, shields continued to be used by certain groups. Often shields were decorated with a painted pattern or an animal representation and these designs developed into systematized heraldic devices during the High Middle Ages for purposes of battlefield identification. The shield was held by a central grip or by straps which went over or around the user's arm. Sometimes they took on the form of kites or flatirons, or had rounded tops on a rectangular base with perhaps an eyehole. They were carried by foot soldiers, knights and cavalry.ĭepending on time and place, shields could be round, oval, square, rectangular, triangular, bilobial or scalloped. In classical antiquity, the Migration Period and the Middle Ages, they were normally constructed of poplar, lime or another split-resistant timber, covered in some instances with a material such as leather or rawhide and often reinforced with a metal boss, rim or banding.

In prehistory and during the era of the earliest civilizations, shields were made of wood, animal hide, woven reeds or wicker. Shields also vary a great deal in thickness whereas some shields were made of relatively deep, absorbent, wooden planking to protect soldiers from the impact of spears and crossbow bolts, others were thinner and lighter and designed mainly for deflecting blade strikes. Shields vary greatly in size, ranging from large panels that protect the user's entire body to small models (such as the buckler) that were intended for hand-to-hand-combat use. Zulu warriors with shields, a detail from an 1847 drawingĪ shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace, battle axe or similar weapon to the side of the shield-bearer. For other uses, see Shield (disambiguation). This article is about the defensive device.

Hoplite shield size