I would like to know if there are sources depicting large heater shields? - as in, the size of a norman kite shield, but the shape of a large "heater" shield (period around 12. cent.) I've seen loads of reproductions and art in history books, but couldn't find period art or surviving examples. To clarify, I'm looking for knightly shields, not pavises or later period specialised shields à la Talhoffer.
Found it! That is exactly what I was looking for.
Thanks for your help, I usually don't focus on this time period and am bad at finding appropriate resources :)
Do you mean a flat topped kite shield, or something with the proportions of a heater shield, but much larger?
Normal heater shields reach from the shoulders to the groin. Flat-topped kite shields reach from the shoulder to the knee. They didn't really get bigger than that.
There aren't any surviving examples I know of. Shields were made of wood and meant to break so they don't usually survive. You may want to look at effegies (tombs) for 3D representations: http://effigiesandbrasses.com/
