The Aborigines were ignorant of metal, their shields were all made of wood; but the woods used, the methods of manufacture and the forms obtained varied according to the regions, the vegetation, the instruments used and the clan traditions. They were used in particular to protect themselves from attacks by spears and boomerangs of the opponent. 

Parade shields like this are among the sacred objects because they belonged to initiated men. They were rarely shown or given to the uninitiated. Dating from the middle of the early 20th century, this object is a collector’s work combining ethnographic interest and aesthetic value, it testifies to the material culture of the Aborigines.