The Prince and the Plunder

A book on how Britain took one boy and piles of treasures from Ethiopia

Category: Shields

Dhal Shield ‘captured’ during the campaign

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What: A “Dhal shield” made of dished hide and metal believed to have been captured in the Abyssinian Campaign

Where: The National Army Museum, Royal Hospital Rd, Chelsea, London SW3 4HT

The database entry: describes a “Dhal shield, 1867-1868; made of dished hide and metal; four brass bosses, four crescents and decoratively shaped brass plaques; believed to have been captured in the Abyssinian Campaign (King Theodore) by Col C F James.

Museum accession number
Armour 1959-10-75

Emperor’s shield collected by Speedy

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What: A shield said to belong to Emperor Tewodros and “collected” on the expedition by intelligence officer Captain Speedy.

Where: The British Museum, Great Russell St, Bloomsbury, London WC1B 3DG

The catalogue entry includes a picture and describes a “composite shield, circular, of leather with elaborate metal ornamentation all over the front”. It adds: “Said to be King Theodore’s shield. See also Af1912,0410.28.”

Details
Museum number Af1939,09.1
Height: 51 cm
Width: 51 cm
Depth: 15 cm
Acquisition notes Collected by Capt.T.C.Speedy in Abyssinia during British Expedition, 1867-68.
Donated by: Mrs Henry Perrin Previous owner/ex-collection: Tewodros II, Emperor of Ethiopia Previous owner/ex-collection: Capt Tristram C S Speedy
Acquisition date: 1939

Hide shield with charms

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What: Shield with charms attached to the handle, taken by the British Museum’s expert on the expedition, Richard Rivington Holmes

Where: The British Museum, Great Russell St, Bloomsbury, London WC1B 3DG

Provenance: Maqdala referenced at length in the museum’s acquisition notes.

The catalogue entry reads:

“Shield made of hide, hippo or buffalo. The circular shield is domed with a central, integral boss and raised, rolled rim. The upper surface of the shield is decorated with a tooled linear pattern of concentric circles and a radial pattern around the boss. Two hide thongs pass through the front of the shield, secured with large knots either side of the boss securing the hide handle at the back. The handle is made of wood covered with hide. Attached to the handle, on a hide thong, are four small charm cases made of stitched cotton and leather. Around the rim of the shield are a series of seventeen holes. A hide thong is passed through two of these, knotted at the front, with a loop at the back. This is attached to the charms by a length of iron wire. One other hide thong is knotted through one of the holes, the other end is broken.”

Detail
Museum number: Af1868,1001.32
Date: 19thC
Previous owner/ex-collection: Sir Richard Rivington Holmes
Acquisition date: 1868

Two hide and silver shields with plaque

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What: Two Magdala Shields decorated in silver, taken by a private of the 33rd regiment

Where: Unknown, last seen in a ctalogue

Pictured on pages 26-29 of the catalogue ‘Wars, Art, Racism & Slavery‘, published in 2009 by the collector and dealer Michael Graham-Stewart. See full catalogue below.

AbeBooks describes ‘Wars, Art, Racism & Slavery‘ as ‘A catalogue of Michael Graham-Stewart Slavery Collection which was purchased by the National Maritime Museum [National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London] in 2002, having been assembled by Graham-Stewart over a period of 14 years.” But there is no mention of the shield in the Greenwich museums’ online database.

The photo of the first shield is captioned: “Shield 1868, Ethiopia the central boss engraved N. H. Stewart Dragoon Guards Magdala April 13 1868 hide with silver mounts, 57 cm.”

The second shield is captioned: “Shield 1868, Ethiopia with suspended engraved plaque detailing provenance hide with silver mounts, 55 cm.” The plaque reads: Shield of Native Chief taken at Magdala by a private of the 33rd regiment and presented by Captain Trent of the 33rd to Robert C. Clarke July 1868″.

Full catalogue

Shield with bullet hole *

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What: Shield with bullet hole, linked to Magdala but wrong date

Where: Pitt Rivers Museum, South Parks Rd, Oxford, OX1 3PP

The accession entry says it belonged to a soldier “killed at the action of ?ARACEE before MAGDALA †, 1860, one of the first 20 recipients of a Snider bullet.”

ARACEE probably refers to Aroge, the decisive battle of the Magdala campaign. The snider bullet probably refers to the snider rifles used for the first time by the British forces on the expedition.

But … The Battle of Aroge took place in 1868 not 1860. This could be a simple mistake in the labeling. However another Pitt Rivers label links the shield to other fighting (see below). So it is possible this shield is from another battle and the Magdala account was added later through confusion or to add interest.

The catalogue entry has three pictures and reads:

“Convex circular hide shield with slightly upturned rim. Decorated with five round silver bosses with raised centres and punched decoration, surrounded by rectangular and flower-shaped silver plaques, all attached with silver-headed rivets.

“There is a bullet hole in the bottom right section of the shield.”

Accession Book Entry – JOHN BUSBY, Esq. … Oxford. – Shield, circular of hide, with (silver) metal strips. The former owner was killed at the action of ?ARACEE before MAGDALA †, 1860, one of the first 20 recipients of a Snider bullet. Brought to England by Lt.-Col. Yorke, who was present at the action.

Display history: PRM display label (1991 – 1995) – AFRICA, ETHIOPIA. Circular hide shield with silver strip decoration. It was used in action in Lij Kassa’s (also known as Theodore II) internal wars in Northern Ethiopia around the capital, Magdala. The original owner of the shield was killed during a battle in 1860. Shields continued to be made in Ethiopia even after the arrival of firearms. The shield was brought to England by Lt. Col. Yorke who was present at the action. Donated by J. Busby. 1940.5.100 [LM 21/03/2007]

Detail
1940.5.100

Shield covered in blue velvet, and silver gilt

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What: A shield from the 18th or 19th century, covered in blue velvet with applied silver-gilt embossed and filigree mounts, with a commemorative brass plaque

Where: The Victoria & Albert Museum, Cromwell Rd, Knightsbridge, London SW7 2RL

The catalogue entry reads: “This shield was taken by the Royal Naval Brigade serving with British troops at the siege of Magdala (Mek’dala) in 1868. It was placed on loan at the South Kensington museum (later renamed the Victoria and Albert Museum) by the Lords of the Admiralty in 1868.”

Museum number:
M.24:1, 2-2005