Famous Shields?

David Amicus

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Jan 20, 2015, 10:58:24 PM1/20/15

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Hercules had one via Hesiod.

In the Iliad Achilles had one and there is brief mention of Nestor's.

In the Aeneid Aeneas has one.

In the Punica Hannibal has one.

Any other famous ones?

Ed Cryer

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Jan 21, 2015, 8:53:59 AM1/21/15

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There's Athena's "aegis", carried by both her and Zeus in the Iliad.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegis

Ed

David Amicus

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Jan 21, 2015, 11:47:51 AM1/21/15

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Thanks! That's the greatest one of all!

Richard Tobin

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Jan 21, 2015, 12:00:01 PM1/21/15

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In article <ea369948-7367-491d...@googlegroups.com>,
David Amicus <davida...@gmail.com> wrote:
>Any other famous ones?

Ajax had a famous shield from behind which his brother Teucer
darted out to shoot his arrows.

Someone has a list of shields in the Iliad:

http://www.salimbeti.com/micenei/shields4.htm

-- Richard

Ed Cryer

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Jan 21, 2015, 1:00:40 PM1/21/15

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In the Greek myths it was shields that had all the magical properties,
but in medieval myths it was usually swords; like Excalibur, Ascalon,
Gram and Balmung.

Ed

Ed Cryer

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Jan 21, 2015, 2:58:05 PM1/21/15

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Ed Cryer wrote:
> David Amicus wrote:
>> On Wednesday, January 21, 2015 at 5:53:59 AM UTC-8, Ed Cryer wrote:
>>> David Amicus wrote:
>>>> Hercules had one via Hesiod.
>>>>
>>>> In the Iliad Achilles had one and there is brief mention of Nestor's.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> In the Aeneid Aeneas has one.
>>>>
>>>> In the Punica Hannibal has one.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Any other famous ones?
>>>>
>>>
>>> There's Athena's "aegis", carried by both her and Zeus in the Iliad.
>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegis
>>>
>>> Ed
>>
>> Thanks! That's the greatest one of all!
>>
>
> In the Greek myths it was shields that had all the magical properties,
> but in medieval myths it was usually swords; like Excalibur, Ascalon,
> Gram and Balmung.
>
> Ed
>
>

I have an image of a shield-wall. It's like the one that the Anglo-Saxon
defenders formed at the top of Senlac Hill in 1066. You stood in battle
array with your shield on your left arm and axe or sword or spear in
your right hand. Your shield formed part of your neighbour's protection too.
The Normans charged up the hill, and the object was to break a gap in
the shield-wall, pour through it and attack from sides and rear. The
cavalry was often used here.

That's how ancient Greek hoplites started. I should suppose that most
battles consisted of "pushing shield-wall against shield-wall".
And you needed to know which shield belonged to which foe. And that's
why they had shield decorations; a lambda for the Spartan ones, and the
chi-rho on Constantine's troops at the Milvian Bridge of Rome.

You don't need magical equipment here; just the cohesion of togetherness.

It's in the single combats that superior weapons count. The Homeric
warriors carried into battle on a chariot, who then challenge someone
facing them. Or the Teutonic knight on his lone quest.

Ed

David Amicus

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Jan 21, 2015, 11:42:36 PM1/21/15

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Thank-you for the link

Francis A. Miniter

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Jan 24, 2015, 8:35:02 PM1/24/15

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In a modern application of the term "shield wall", Frank Herbert used it
to describe the formidable rocky geographic feature that surrounded the
city of Arrakeen in "Dune" and which protected it from attack and from
the desert storms and sandworms. Paul Atreides succeeded in piercing it
using the "family atomics".

Herbert drew on many aspects of many cultures in writing his (six
volume) trilogy.

Francis A. Miniter