Just saw this article
(With apologies that it's not in the daily mail ;) )
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2019/may/23/2300-year-old-iron-age-bark-shield-leicestershire?
On reading about the shapes created, pictish shields came to mind
Nice find. The BBC version https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-48377927 has a reconstruction, and the Indy at https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/celtic-shield-leicestershire-archaeologist-ancient-warfare-a8927871.html talks more about the visible battle damage.
Quote from: Duncan Head on May 23, 2019, 10:46:33 PM
Nice find. The BBC version https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-leicestershire-48377927 has a reconstruction, and the Indy at https://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/archaeology/celtic-shield-leicestershire-archaeologist-ancient-warfare-a8927871.html talks more about the visible battle damage.
and even painting details, scored and painted with a red checker board
Lots of questions with this one. Whose shield was it? Not an individual but a type - a skirmisher, a warrior, a cavalryman? Was it a poor man's shield? Certainly, it features no expensive metal parts but it is not unsophisticated, with its strengtheners, wooden rim and woven boss. Is it, as the newspaper reports suggest, a deliberately lighter shield type? Plenty of fun speculation there. Be worth seeing it in a publication that fits in with known archaeological specimens to compare.
Incidentally, the reconstruction reminded me in general shape and size of the Battersea shield - is the latter a deluxe version of a common shield type represented by the new bog-standard (sorry, couldn't resist :) ) one?
Quote from: Erpingham on May 24, 2019, 09:53:54 AM
Incidentally, the reconstruction reminded me in general shape and size of the Battersea shield - is the latter a deluxe version of a common shield type represented by the new bog-standard (sorry, couldn't resist :) ) one?
The Guardian report made that very point.
Cheers
Mick