492 



stance ; but that it may have been painted or decorated is not impro- 

 bable. The toughness and density of the alder, of which it is com- 

 posed, would in itself be a firm defence against the thrusts of the 

 swords, if not the spears, to which it was opposed. Unlike some of the 

 ancient classic shields, through which the forearm was passed, and 

 which were chiefly used as a protection to the body, this Irish wooden 

 shield, grasped by the stout crosspiece underneath the umbo, could be 

 projected to full arm's length to meet the weapon of an antagonist. 



In the Leahhar-na- Garth, or "Book of Eights," we read of shields, 

 generally equal in number to the swords which formed the tribute of the 

 chieftains, and some of these are said to have had " the brightness of 

 the sun." Others are described as fair shields from beyond the seas ; 

 shields against which spears are shivered, bright shields over fine 

 hands, shields of red colour," and "shields of valour;" and again, 

 "golden shields," probably plated with that metal, like that gold- 

 adorned shield said to have been found near Lismore upwards of a 

 century ago, the bullion of which was sold in Cork for upwards of 

 £600. 



1^0 conjecture can be formed as to the precise age of this antique 

 shield ; but it certainly must be of great antiquity, and is, so far as I 

 can learn, the only perfect article of this description found either in the 

 British Isles or on the Continent — for the remains of the wooden shield 

 found in a barrow in Yorkshire were decorated with bronze bosses, and 

 were encircled with an iron rim. 



In the excavations recently made at Kydam Moss, in Jutland, se- 

 veral shields were discovered ; but, according to the account given of 

 these diggings, " they were so thin and soft that not one was taken up 

 whole." These shield boards are said to have been of oak, maple, or 

 ash ; but we have no botanical opinion upon the subject, and I doubt 

 whether the ash grew in Jutland at the period to which these articles 

 have been referred. 



I am indebted to my friend, Mr. Pranks, of the British Museum, 

 for some notes respecting the shields found in England and Scotland ; 

 but this, as well as a communication from Dr. Petrie, will more appo- 

 sitely apply to the Irish bronze shield in Lord Londesborough's collec- 

 tion, and of which I expect to be able to present a model to the Aca- 

 demy very soon. In the meantime I must refer to Mr. Pranks' illustra- 

 tions and descriptions of British shields, in that beautiful work, the 

 " Hora? Perales," of my late friend, John Mitchell Kemble. 



In the Academy's Museum may be seen a collection of seven em- 

 bossed circular thin brass plates, one of which I have figured at p. 637 

 of the Catalogue, and stated my belief that it formed part of the decora- 

 tion of a shield. Such, it appears, is also the opinion of Mr. Pranks, 

 who has figured a similar article in the " Hora3 Perales." 



The Eev. Professor Haughton, in illustration of the efl'ect produced 

 upon the shape of the shield by its position in the bog under pressure, 

 exhibited and described drawings of certain fossil remains found in 



