"shield rims...what were they made of?" Topic

Hello all,
In regards to ancient and dark age shields what were the rims of shields made of?
I am in the painting mode and was wondering if the rims were metal or wood or leather. It would seem presumptuous to assume they were all made of metal. I bet a lot were bound with leather.
cheers

I believe they were mostly rawhide, nailed to the wood. Wet rawhide shrinks as it dries, and this can tighten the shield up and give it strength.

Expensive high-status shields, such as the Sutton Hoo find, might have a thin bronze rim and bracing strips.

Cheers, Simon

If they could afford it, metal. A metal rim makes your shield much tougher to break.

Rawhide isn't as good, but it's probably the next-best option to a metal shield rim.

I believe that they were stitched rawhide. Metal rnims are fine for a flat topped shueld such as an imperial Roman scutum, but there is a pitential problem with a round shield in that a blow will be deflected off a curved metal rim . It might be better to allow a blow to bite in a bit which then gives the opponent theproblem of recovering his blade whilst you strike at him.
Shields are made with fittings that can be removed and replaced so it is likely that damage was expected.

link

is a good guide to Anglo Saxon shields

Thanks to all,
Great link to the Anglo Saxon Shield article, Lewisgunner!
I will probably paint most shield rims as if they are leather (lighter shades of brown).But this causes me also to wonder if the folks back then painted their leather?
The issue I would have with painted leather (and Painted metal for that matter)…is that on miniatures, this treatment in my eye tends to look like plastic, which i know they didn't have… lol

Rawhide can come out in quite a pale off-white colour, rather than a brown. Google "Rawhide leather" for some ideas ("Rawhide" alone, mostly generates images of cowboys :-) ).