The Norse shield is a round board with a hole cut through the middle, a bar across the back of that hole for the hand, and a steel dome over the front to cover both. Nothing else in Viking age kit is that simple or that clever. It is light enough to move, cheap enough that everyone had one, and the boss turns the weakest point into the strongest.
Boards and bosses
The complete shields run 20 to 30 inches across. Two hand made 24 inch boards carry painted faces, one with twin ravens on red and white over a steel valknut boss, one in a navy and white pinwheel with a steel boss and an Elder Futhark rune ring. A plain 24 inch board comes with a leather arm strap and hand grip. The 30 inch pieces are the closest to the archaeology: one with a planked body, a steel dome boss carrying an engraved knotwork roundel and a rawhide rim, and one with a planked linden face, a brass boss with carved knotwork and a rawhide rim. Linden is the timber the sagas name, and it is light for its strength. The steel faced boards are a 20 inch dished face with an etched knotwork border, a 24 inch board with an engraved Celtic knotwork border and a riveted rim, and one with a domed centre boss and an engraved Norse knotwork band. Two bosses are sold on their own for repairs or builds, one with a pattern etched dome and a rune cut flange, one in 14 gauge steel with a Mjolnir engraving. A 48 inch Norman kite shield sits at the edge of the group. Prices run from 139 dollars to 449 dollars.
How they were actually made
The construction is worth understanding before you buy, because a shield with a strapped forearm grip is a later design and a Norse one is held in the fist behind the boss. Our page on Viking shields covers the planks, the rim, the boss and what the finds actually show about size. Complete boards are in round shields, loose steel is in shield bosses, and everything together is in Viking shields.
Ransack Viking is a US company based in North Babylon, New York. These pieces are handmade in the Czech Republic, then imported, inspected and shipped from New York. Engraving is done in the US after arrival: text 19 dollars, symbol 39 dollars, family crest 49 dollars.
Free US shipping
On most pieces. Heavier and oversized ones carry a flat charge.
Hand Forged
Heated, hammered and ground by hand.
Engraving available
Names, dates or Norse runes on most pieces.
