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The scutum was a 10kg large oval curved shield made from two sheets of wood glued together and covered with canvas and leather, usually with a spindle shaped boss along the vertical length of the shield. The best surviving example, from Dura-Europos in Syria, was 1.06 m (42 in) in height, a chord of 0.66 m (26 in), with a distance around the curve of 0.86 m (34 in), and a thickness of 5 mm to 6 mm.

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Q: What is a Scutum?
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What is the middle of a roman shield called?

The 'boss' or 'umbo' in the center of the Roman scutum was used as an auxiliary punching weapon.


What is a boss on a roman shield used for?

The shield boss was not used only by the Roman. Many other peoples also used it. The purpose of the boss to deflect blows from the centre of round shields. It also provided a place to mount the shield's grip. With the introduction of the scutum (a convex, rectangular shield) leather straps were attached to the grip. The boss also made the shield a punching weapon as well. A punching motion towards an oncoming blow could be made and the boss provided a sharp pointed end which could act as a min spear. The bosses of the roman scutum were made of thick metal.


How heavy were the roman shields?

The Romans had three types of shield over their history.From the 6th century BC to the 4th century BC the Romans used the clipeus, which was a small round shield which was carried on the arm. It was then replaced by the parma and the scutumThe parma was a round shield which was a yard of less across and was made of metal, making it very effective. It was used by the light infantry in the Early- and Mid- Republic. It was scrapped when the light infantry was also scrapped and all legionaries used the same weapons and equipment, thus getting replaced by the scutum which was previously the shield of the heavy infantry.The scutum which was originally oval and curved and was made of two sheets or strips of bentwood glued together to make a convex curve to deflect javelins and blows. They were covered with canvas and hide and the edges were bound in rawhide or iron. Later the scutum changed in shape and became rectangular. As they were also curved, they formed a semi-cylinder. They had a round boss of bronze, brass of iron at the centre. The best surviving example has been found in Syria. It is 1.06 metre (42 in) high, a distance around the curve of 0.86 metre (34 in) which made its width, a depth of 66 centimetres (26 in) a thickness of 5-6 millimetres and weighs 10 kilos (22 pounds). The rectangular version of the scutum remained the shield of the Roman soldiers for the rest of Roman history.


What size are roman shields?

According to the ancient writer Polybius, the Roman shield was convex in shape and had straight sides. It was 4 feet long and 2 1/2 feet wide. The Romans had several shields. The first known one was the clipeus and was modelled on the Greek Hoplon. It was round and concave. it was nearly 1 yard across and was made of wood with bronze on the outside and leather on the inside. In the Samnite wars, the Romans adopted the Samnite scutum. Originally it was oval and concave. Its size is mentioned above. The measurement is in Roman feet (1 Roman foot = 0.9708 English feet). Later it became square. The Parma shield was introduced in the late empire. It was used by the auxiliaries and the cavalry. It was very similar to the clipeus, but it was made of iron.


What military equipment did the roman army have?

Roman soldiers were issued three weapons: the gladius, a short double edged sword, two pilum (wood shafted javelins with a steel shaft at the front), and the pugio, a short dagger. Any of the three could be considered primary weapons.