Shields were a necessary part of the defensive armor of ancient times, but remains of them are very scanty. Scenes of arming and of combat, however, are so frequent in Greek and Roman art that we are acquainted with their general appearance. Greek shields were usually circular or oval in shape, and made of wooden frames covered with hides and reinforced with bronze. The rim and a large boss in the center were the most essential metal parts, but the entire surface might be covered with bronze, or plates of various forms arranged upon it. The large bronze plates in Case 5 and in Case B in the Second Room seem to have been parts of shields. When using the shield as a defense the warrior thrust his left arm through the Loops in the inside, one of which was close to the rim at the left and another usually near the center of the shield; he held a third, which probably was stouter than the others, in his hand. The loops on the rim are shown in a painting on the amphora which stands on the pedestal in the Fifth Room, as well as the strap extending from side to side by which it was suspended around the wearer’s neck on the march (fig. 103). The Dodona warrior carries the so-called Boeotian shield which has depressions in the middle of each side. Various explanations are given of the origin of this form; a probable one is that it results from stretching a hide over an oval frame on which the top and bottom were fastened firmly while the sides were left free and were naturally drawn in by the pull from both ends. Another possibility is that the shield was cut out at the sides to provide peep-holes. Roman shields were rectangular and curved around at the sides to protect the wearer’s body. Only the boss and the rim were made of metal. The shield of the Greek soldier bore the device of his state, as the Koppa of Corinth, which was painted on the shields of her citizen-warriors; and the Roman soldier carried the sign of his legion in the same fashion. Interesting devices, frequently animals’ heads, were adopted like coats of arms by Greek nobles, and many of these can be seen on vases of the sixth century. An amphora on the bottom of Case 4 shows shields decorated with the heads of a bull and a boar. [Illustration: FIG. 111. AMAZON WITH BATTLE-AXE AND WICKER SHIELD]