The Construction of a Viking Shield; Part 6 (final)

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Having completed the structure of the shield, all that was left to do now was to decide how best to treat the rawhide to protect it from the elements, and reflect on the findings of the project.

The Construction of a Viking Shield; Part 5

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With the shield reinforced with linen, then rawhide, the next task was to reinforce the edge as supported by archaeological evidence (as previously discussed). After that, completion of the project awaited attachment of the boss and handle.

The Construction of a Viking Shield; Part 4

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The structure was now far more robust, and the effort required to push the shield flat was now greater. Would one be prepared to go into a life or death or struggle with the shield as it was – most unlikely, so it was decided appropriate to apply a layer of raw-hide to each side.

The Construction of a Viking Shield; Part 3

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In respect of linen, although there are some modern sources that suggest that linen could have been used to face Anglo-Saxon / Viking shields, the author at the time of writing this article, having sought assistance from the Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo[1] is unable to find any hard evidence that linen was ever or actually used in this context. That does not mean, however that it never was, and as the purpose of this exercise is to learn about the construction it was decided to face both sides of the shield with linen canvas.

The Construction of a Viking Shield; Part 2

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Having sourced the correct wood, the task of assembling the shield began. The redwood was cut to 1 metre lengths, 145mm wide, and reduced to 1cm thick. The longitudinal edges were then scored and each adjoining edge applied with pearl glue to ensure good adhesion...

The Construction of a Viking Shield; Part 1

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Ever since I first read Caesar’s The Conquest of Gaul,[1] I've been intrigued by Caesar’s comments on his troops having being caught unawares by the Nervii:

“…Then as the Nervii were within range, he gave the signal for battle. On going to the other side of the field to address the troops there, he found them already in action. The soldiers were so pushed for time by the enemy’s eagerness to fight that they could not even take the covers off their shields or put on their helmets…”

(Nualabugeye 2008)

From this extract it can be inferred that the shields, in being covered, required some protection from the elements. Why? Although this non-empirical evidence is anachronistic to this work in general, the problems in shield production would still have been encountered by the 9th - 10th century Scandinavians by virtue of the fact that woodworking technology had not, at least to the modern mind, significantly progressed.

Therefore, having taken an exploratory and hermeneutical approach to the relevant literature, this article aims to document each stage of the authors own empirical research in reconstructing a 'Viking' shield, using only materials available to 10^th century Scandinavians – where possible. This article is not intended as the last word on Viking shield construction, but rather, by making empirical observations and analysis on various aspects of its construction, it is intended to generate debate.