Caledonian Craftsman

30/09/2026

"Giornico" - 15th C Italian Rotella

The Rotella was a common type of Italian shield, used through the 15th century and into the 16th, seen prominently in manual fencing manuals of the time, not to mention in period artwork. While many later rotella’s where made of steel, a huge number, particularly earlier, were wooden. An excellent source of extant examples come from the Battle of Giornico 1478, where a Swiss force captured many from the Milanese force they defeated, and are still held in Lucerne.

This example is based off of those finds, with the same approximate diameter and strap arrangment.

As with all of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 12mm ply base. The shields are faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clinched nails.

Statistics:
Diameter - 60cm
Weight - 2.8kg

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/giornico-15th-c-italian-rotella

29/09/2026

"The Ungarischer" - 15th C Hungarian Shield

The Hungarian shield, as it is called in the 1440’s Gladiatoria Fechtbuch, is a small and lightweight shield that likely filled a similar role to a buckler when it comes to fighting.

Not much else is known about them, and there’s no extant examples left sadly so these are based upon those seen in the Fechtbuch (MS Germ.Quart.16), albeit without the large spike at the front, which is difficult to replicate in a way that would be safe to use. There is a front hand grip and an adjustable buckled strap for the arm.

As with many of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 10mm ply base pressed into shaped and reinforced with clinched nails. The shield is faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clenched nails.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics:
Length - 55cm
Width - 18cm
Depth - 5cm (8cm inc. grip)
Weight - 560g

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/hungarian-shield-ungrischen-schilt

28/09/2026

"The Gladiatoria" - 15th C German Targe

This targe (or tartschen in German, also called ecranches) is based on a particular example seen in the Gladiatoria Group of German fechtbuchs. Seen in a number of different version of the manuscript from the mid 1400’s, these seem to focus on foot combat rather than mounted, given the simple grip and lack of any method of suspension.

As with many of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 10mm ply base pressed into shaped and reinforced with clinched nails. The shield is faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clenched nails.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics:
Height - 34cm
Width - 30cm
Depth - 7cm (14cm inc. grip)
Weight - 600g

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/german-targe-the-gladiatoria-15th-century

27/09/2026

"The Knight" - 14th & 15th C Heater Shield

As time went on, heaters gradually became smaller as armour improved. At the same time the popularity of jousting grew greatly and these shields where a staple of such events, with a knights arms emblazoned upon them for all to see. We also start having some near complete extant examples to go off, in particular with working out how straps were arranged on the shield, and we start seeing a much greater complexity in the area compared to previous eras.

As with all of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 10mm ply base pressed into shaped and reinforced with clinched nails. The shields are faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clinched nails.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics:
Height - 61cm
Width - 50cm
Depth - 10cm
Weight - 1.5kg

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/heater-shield-the-knight-14th-and-15th-century

26/09/2026

"Codex Manesse" (Large) - Late 13th to Mid 14th C Heater Shield

While similar to “The Knight” shield I make, the Codex Manesse shield differs in the fact it is flat. These flat heater shields tend to be very closely dated into the late 13th through to the mid 14th century, with a number of finds to corroborate this, particularly those from Marburg Cathedral, now in Marburg Landgrafenschloss museum.
This is larger version to my other Codex Manesse shield, matching the range of sizes we see in both the manuscript and extant examples.

Many thanks go to Roland Warzecha/Dimicator for posting details of some of these Marburg shields, which you can see here.

The dimensions and straps are based off one of the Marburg shields (Shield of the Lords of Steinau, c. 1300), though the shape is closer to that of other Manesse shields.

As with all of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 12mm ply base. The shields are faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clinched nails.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics:
Height - 75cm
Width - 56cm
Weight - 3.3kg

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/codex-manesse-large-late-13th-to-mid-14th-c-heater-shield

25/09/2026

"Codex Manesse" - Late 13th to Mid 14th C Heater Shield

While similar to “The Knight” shield I make, the Codex Manesse shields I make differ in the fact they are flat. These flat heater shields tend to be very closely dated into the late 13th through to the mid 14th century, with a number of finds to corroborate this, particularly those from St Elisabeth Church in Marburg, now in Marburg Landgrafenschloss museum.

Many thanks go to Roland Warzecha/Dimicator for publicly posting details of some of these Marburg shields

The shape and dimensions are based off one of the Marburg shields (The red shield with a white lion rampant c. 1350)

As with all of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 12mm ply base. The shields are faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clinched nails.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics:
Height - 60cm
Width - 46cm
Weight - 2.1kg

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/codex-manesse-late-13th-to-mid-14th-c-heater-shield

24/09/2026

"The Crusader" - 12th & 13th C Early Heater Shield

This is a transitional shield, lying between earlier kite shields and later “traditional” heater shields. Seen in sources across central and western Europe, this was a dominant form of shield during the early Crusades.

The strap arrangement seen across many different artworks in this period is one of the simplest of any shield, seemingly featuring just a guige and a forward hand grip. This allows for easy transition to using the left hand for other purposes like controlling reigns, grappling or using with your weapon, with the shield resting very comfortably on top of the left arm.

As with many of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 10mm ply base pressed into shaped and reinforced with clinched nails. The shield is faced and backed with linen covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are from 3-4mm leather, fastened with clinched nails.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics;
Height - 80cm
Width - 50cm
Depth - 10cm
Weight - 1.8kg

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/transitional-kiteheater-shield-12th-13th-century

23/09/2026

"The Norman" - 11th & 12th C Kite Shield

This kite shield is based on depictions seen in the Bayeux Tapestry. These shields typically reach from the shoulder down to the knee, with some featuring a rims and bosses.

The strapping for the shield is arranged in a rectangular shape, with the bottom strap being adjustable for to suit different sizes, providing a number of different ways to grip the shield. The guige is simply a rope that is tied to the grip straps on the shield which can be easily adjusted according to the length you need.

As with many of my shields, the construction is all done by hand, with a 10mm ply base that has been pressed into shape and reinforced with clinched nails. The shield is faced and backed with linen and covered in gesso ready for painting. Straps are cut from 3-4mm leather and fastened with clinched nails and washers.
Note that many historic shields were covered with thin rawhide/parchment, not fabric. However this would be significantly more expensive, so as standard I use fabric. If you would like an even more historically accurate shield please do get in touch.

Statistics;
Height - 120cm
Width - 50cm
Depth - 10cm
Weight - 2.15kg

https://caledoniancraftsman.com/historic-range/p/kite-shield-the-norman-11th-12th-century

08/07/2026

Got a bit of a back log of orders right now thanks to a number of minor work related issues I've been dealing with. However, I was very glad to get this German Pavise off today for Artos Munitorum in time for Tewkesbury this weekend.

Really happy with how it all turned out. It's shape is based on a shield seen in one of the woodcut prints of the Triumph of Maximilian (Triumphzug), from the 1510's.

16/03/2026

Thank you to all the staff at TORM, the other traders and of course all the customers - it was a fantastic weekend, marking my best TORM to date.

Looking forward to seeing you all again in November!

What a fabulous weekend. Big thanks to all of our customers. It was great to see you. Hope to see you next time.