Ornamental shield made from an elk’s antler

According to a local tradition this ornamental shield comes from the mortuary chapel of the Emperor Louis the Pious at Metz. Louis was the son and successor of Charlemagne. Although it has been called ‘Charlemagne’s shield’, it was probably made and hung in the chapel several centuries after Louis’s death.

Ornamental shield made from an elk’s antler

According to a local tradition this ornamental shield comes from the mortuary chapel of the Emperor Louis the Pious at Metz. Louis was the son and successor of Charlemagne. Although it has been called ‘Charlemagne’s shield’, it was probably made and hung in the chapel several centuries after Louis’s death.