Attributed shield of Alexander the Great

Attributed shield of Alexander the Great

Alexander the Great round shield designed by Marto from Toledo, Spain. The same shield was used in the Oliver Stone's film 'Alexander' (2004) by actor Colin Farrell.

In the central part of the shield is depicted head of medusa, which in Greek mythology was a monster (Gorgon), generally described as having the face of a hideous human female with living venomous snakes in place of hair. Medusa was beheaded by the hero Perseus, who thereafter used her head as a weapon, until he gave it to the goddess Athena to place on her shield. Head of Gorgona was Pan-Hellenic symbol, also used by ancient Macedonians. It was depicted on Alexander's chest armor at the Alexander Mosaic (Battle of Issus) found at Pompeii.