This is a very old style of shield dating back over 3,000 years. Bronze age artwork shows warriors with such shields. We know from the Romans that Celto-british warriors were still using this sheild at the time of their invasion of Britain. Both Bronze Age and Iron Age people believed shields could hold the magic to ward off harm. When celebrating victory a chieftain was sometimes carried on the shield of a dead enemy. After the celebration the shield was sent to the bottom of a sacred lake or burned in a fire - a gift to the gods giving thanks that their tribe's magic had been greater than their foes. The Romans also took shields as trophies for their gods, laying them at the feet of bound prisoners to be sent to be paraded in triumph in Rome.