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The Moel Hebog shield ( cy, Tarian Moel Hebog) or Moel Siabod shield is a large copper-alloy Yetholm-type shield from Bronze Age Britain, found in
The late
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
in 1784, and now in the British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docume ...
in London. It dates from 1300–1000 BC.
Description
The late Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...
shield was found in a bog near Moel Hebog mountain in 1784, near Beddgelert
Beddgelert () is a village and community in the Snowdonia area of Gwynedd, Wales. The population of the community taken at the 2011 census was 455, and includes Nantmor and Nant Gwynant. It is reputed to be named after the legendary houn ...
. It is now in the British Museum's collection. Other sources point to a finding on Moel Siabod
Moel Siabod ( Welsh for "bare hill" with unknown meaning of 'Siabod'), is a mountain in Snowdonia, North Wales, which sits isolated above the village of Dolwyddelan. At , it is the highest peak in the Moelwynion mountain range. The UK Nation ...
.
Richard Blurton wrote of the shield in the book ''The Enduring Image: Treasures from the British Museum'', "This shield is a splendid example, representative of the rise of large sheet-bronze work in later Bronze Age Europe. Much effort was directed towards the production of ceremonial metal armour indicating the prevalence of the idea of man as a warrior."
There have been calls for the artefact to be returned to Wales.
See also
*Archaeology of Wales
The archaeology of Wales (Welsh: ''Archaeoleg Cymru'') is the study of human occupation within the country of Wales which has been occupied by modern humans since 225,000 BCE, with continuous occupation from 9,000 BCE. Analysis of the sites, arte ...
References
Archaeology of Wales Bronze Age Wales Individual shields Prehistoric objects in the British Museum Welsh artefacts {{Wales-history-stub