The Chertsey Shield
- Gallery: Room 50
- Culture: Iron Age
- Date: 400 BC - 250 BC (circa)
- Object type: shield
- Materials: copper alloy
- Museum number: 1986,0901.1
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
Before you is The Chertsey Shield, a remarkable artifact from the Iron Age. This oval shield was crafted entirely from copper alloy sheeting, extremely thin at just 1–1.25 mm. Made from nine separate bronze sections, it features a broad copper alloy binding around the edge.
The front has decorative detailing—there’s a long central spine with a raised ridge above a central boss, ending with small round finials. On the back, a solid ash handle is covered in copper alloy and shaped with omega forms that look like stylized bird heads.
This shield is unique because it’s the only known example in Europe made completely out of bronze. It was made with great skill and likely served a decorative or ceremonial purpose rather than for battle. In its bent and crumpled state, it was found in the River Thames in 1985 and later professionally restored. Like the famed Battersea Shield, it was deliberately placed in the river—a striking display of craftsmanship and culture.
See it in person
The Chertsey Shield is on display in Room 50 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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