From some passages in the Sagas it seems that some of the shields were so large that men could be laid on them, and that some were oblong, as represented in wood-carvings and on the Bayeux tapestry. “Then the king made ready and went along the valley; he selected a resting-place for the night where all his men came together and lie in the open air under their shields” (St. Olaf’s Saga, ch. 219). “When Olaf was in the Syllingar (Scilly Islands) a hermit prophesied to him ‘that he would get severely wounded in a fight, and be carried on a shield on board his ship; that he would be cured in seven nights, and then be baptized;’ and this proved to be true” (Olaf Tryggvason’s Saga (Heimskringla), ch. 32). _Brynja_, or ring coats-of-mail, are often alluded to, and the benches in Odin’s hall were covered with them. We have seen from the finds that _Brynjas_ were used at a very early period, probably even before the Christian era. They were made long and short—some, in fact, were so short as not to cover the stomach. Only in two instances is the _spanga-brynja_, or plate coat-of-mail, mentioned. Occasionally brynjas are described as being made of gold. We read that the loss of the famous battle of Stamford Bridge by Harald Hardradi was attributed to his men having left their coats-of-mail on board their ship. Many coats-of-mail are described as being impervious to weapons, owing, no doubt, to their wonderful workmanship and the hardness of the rings. Some of the poetical names given to brynjas are:— The woof of spears. War-woof. Ring-shirt. Tent of Hlokk. Shirt of Gunnar. Shirt of Odin. Grey clothes of Odin. Cloak of kings. Blue shirt. Battle-cloak. From the following account we see that some of these coats-of-mail were made thicker than others:— “Hjálmar said: ‘I want to fight Angantyr, for I have a brynja in which I have never been wounded; it is set with fourfold rings’” (Orvar Odd’s Saga, ch. 14). In the sea-fight between Olaf and Svein jarl— “The latter had more men, but the king had picked men on his ship, and they were so well equipped that every one had a brynja; and on this occasion they did not get wounded” (St. Olaf’s Saga, c. 47).[106] [Illustration: Fig. 887. ] [Illustration: Fig. 888. ] Bronze plates, with raised figures, found in Öland. ¾ real size. Frey’s boar. The horned helmet similar to one in the British Museum. Helgi Hardbeinsson, was told by his herdsman that he had seen many armed men, who had come to kill him, and he thus described the war-dress of one of them, as they sat in a circle taking their morning meal (day-meal):—