The argive shield as I said before had the rim exactly for supporting the extra weight on shoulder. The weight was making the first piece that a soldier running away would drop. From there comes the insulting characterization ''Ripsaspis (Ριψάσπις)''= shield dropper. You can also see an example of how soldiers complained about its weight in Xenofon when leading a unit uphill shouted to a soldier who was slow and he responded that its easy for him to say cause he is on horse back and carries no shield. Offcourse then Xenofon dismounted took the shield from him and started walking fast uphill until the insults of the whole unit forced the lazy soldier to take back the shield.Originally Posted by Cataphract_Of_The_City
Bookmarks