The Wandsworth shield boss
- Gallery: Room 50
- Culture: Iron Age
- Date: 350 BC - 150 BC (circa)
- Object type: shield
- Materials: copper alloy
- Museum number: 1858,1116.2
- 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 Wandsworth shield boss," an ancient object from the Iron Age. This shield boss is made of copper alloy and decorated with stylized bird-head designs created using a technique called repoussé. You'll notice the metal is carefully shaped, varying in thickness from the base to the top.
At the center is a depression with a small rivet hole, once used to attach a now-missing ornamental stud. Around the top of the boss, there is a groove with old repair marks—one side still shows a short length of wire used to mend a crack in ancient times.
Look closely at the flange, where curvilinear relief decorations mirror the symmetry of the bird motifs on the boss. Some engraved patterns are visible in the hollowed areas, made using a rocking graver. This shield boss was fastened to a shield using six rivets—only one remains.
Found along the River Thames in Wandsworth, the piece was donated by the Royal Archaeological Institute, London, offering a glimpse into ancient metalworking artistry.
See it in person
The Wandsworth shield boss 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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