Duo Qian Fang Pai (奪鉛防牌)

MINOR UPDATE JUNE 28, 2023

Drawing of a Duo Qian Fang Pai (highlighted), from 'Wu Bei Ji Yao (《武備集要》)'.

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Patron only: Shields of China's peripherals and Sinosphere

The final part of my Shield Evolution series will cover the shield designs of Gorguyeo Kingdom, Jurchen Jin Dynasty, Dali Kingdom, Joseon Dynasty, Vietnam, ethnic minorities of China, Taiwan indigenous peoples, Xizang, Japan, and Ryūkyū Kingdom. This blog post is exclusive to my Patrons and can be accessed here.

If you like the first three parts of this series, please support me via Patreon!

Other blog posts in my Shield Evolution series:

Part 1: Shang to Han
Part 2: Northern and Southern Dynasties to Tang
Part 3: Song to Qing
Part 4: Shields of China's peripherals and Sinosphere (Patron-only content)

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The evolution of shields in China — Part 3: Song to Qing

The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms that followed the downfall of Tang Dynasty was a period of chaos and upheaval. Eventually, the northeastern part of China largely fall under the dominion of Khitan Liao Dynasty, while various kingdoms of China proper eventually unified under Song Dynasty, very much like Northern and Southern Dynasties period.

Most of the recognisable designs and aesthetics of Chinese shield, such as painted-on tiger or dragon head motif, lack of shield boss, and strong preference of round and pentagonal shields, as well as free-standing shields, became firmly established during this period. While new shields continued to be introduced, they no longer deviate significantly from the established norms.

Song Dynasty (960 AD – 1279 AD)

Must like its Southern Dynasties predecessors, Song Dynasty faced constant threat from several enemies with overwhelming cavalry superiority, namely Khitans, Jurchens and Mongols, as well as Tanguts to a lesser extent. However, Song Dynasty's attempts to emulate the combined arms force of its predecessors had largely failed due to several factors, chief among them the prohibitive cost, as well as the lost of technical knowledge of military-grade wagon crafting (due to the fact that exceedingly powerful Tang cavalry made war wagon obsolete and its knowledge forgotten).

A heavily deteriorated mural found in an ancient tomb at Xinhua county, depicting an armoured soldier with an enormous shield. Based on the coinage found inside the tomb, it is believed to date to late Northern Song period.

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The evolution of shields in China — Part 2: Northern and Southern Dynasties to Tang

MINOR UPDATE MARCH 4, 2024

The Uprising of the Five Barbarians overran North China in 316 AD and caused the downfall of Western Jin Dynasty. The remnants fled southward and founded the Eastern Jin Dynasty, while the barbarians (and a handful of Han rulers) founded their own kingdoms in North China, collectively known as the Sixteen Kingdoms. Eventually, the sixteen kingdoms reunified into Northern Wei, first of the Northern Dynasties, under Xianbei ruler Tuoba Gui (拓跋珪), while Eastern Jin Dynasty was overthrown by Liu Song Dynasty, first of the Southern Dynasties, under Han ruler Liu Yu (劉裕).

Thus China entered a period of turmoil and constant struggle known as Northern and Southern Dynasties. Due to nomadic influences, this period saw many drastic changes to Chinese military tactics and ultra-heavy cataphracts came to dominate the battlefield. Ironically, Chinese shield did not evolve as drastically as the previous dynasties. Both Northern and Southern Dynasties inherited the same type of long shield from Jin period, although as time went on Northern and Southern shield designs gradually diverged from each other.

Northern Dynasties (386 AD – 581 AD)

Despite their nomadic/barbarian origin, Northern Dynasties adopted and inherited much of the military legacy of Western Jin Dynasty, which they overthrew.

Oblong long shield with zoomorphic shield boss

Section of a mural depicting an armoured Northern Wei warrior with a long shield. Datong, China.

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The evolution of shields in China — Part 1: Shang to Han

A couple days ago I chanced upon this interesting article in Periklis Deligiannis's blog. It is nice to see that ancient Chinese military is gaining interest overseas, although (I presume) due to language barrier the author has to rely on questionable artist's renditions of Chinese shields for his article. While my blog isn't strictly academic, I think it'd be nice if I supplement his article with a more in-depth look on the evolution of Chinese shield.


A shield is known as Dun (盾), Pai (牌, can also be written as 排, but less common), as well as its archaic names, Gan (干, note that this character cannot be written as 幹), Lu (櫓), and Bing Jia (秉甲, lit. 'Handheld armour'), in Chinese language. In modern usage, Chinese characters "Dun" and "Pai" are usually combined into a single word, Dun Pai (盾牌). Shield had been an integral, if obscure, part of Chinese culture for thousand of years, not just for warfare but also for art, ceremony and religious purposes.

Shang Dynasty (1600 BC – 1046 BC)

As the earliest verifiable dynasty in Chinese history, archaeological finds of Shang shields are extremely scarce. There are only a few known types of shields in use during this period.

Oracle bone script, interpreted as either Gan (干) or Dun (盾).

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Li Pai (立牌)

Different types of Song Dynasty Li Pai. From 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

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Shou Pai (手牌)

A Shou Pai, from 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

Shou Pai (手牌, hand shield) was a long and narrow hand shield made of poplar or pine wood. It was five chi seven cun tall, about one chi wide, and shaped like a concave hexagon.

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Gun Bei (滾被)

Drawing of an ornate Qing Dynasty Gun Bei, from 'Huang Chao Li Qi Tu Shi (《皇朝禮器圖式》)'.

Gun Bei (滾被, lit. 'Rolling blanket') was an unusual equipment used by the Ming army. A literal two cun thick cotton blanket used as a handheld version of Ruan Bi (軟壁), Gun Bei was usually deployed in front of the main body of an army to screen it against arrows, stones, or even arquebus shots. Using Gun Bei was such a risky prospect (as it did not always stop the projectiles) that the soldier would earn double pay.

Gun Bei was usually used in conjunction with a pair of sabres.

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Ding Pai (釘牌)

Front (right) and back (left) view of a Ding Pai, from 'Bing Jing (《兵鏡》)'.

Ding Pai (釘牌, spiked shield) was a modified Ai Pai (挨牌) that was reinforced with bamboo and covered in iron spikes. Although dangerous looking, Ding Pai was not intended as an offensive weapon, as its size and the way it was gripped (i.e. with straps) prevented it to be used effectively for bashing. Instead, Ding Pai was designed to be discarded should the need to retreat arise—the spiked shield served as makeshift caltrop to slow the advance of pursuers.

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Yan Wei Pai (燕尾牌)

A different Yan Wei Pai, from 'Wu Bei Zhi (《武備志》)'.

Yan Wei Pai (燕尾牌, lit. 'Swallowtail shield'), sometimes simply known as Shou Pai (手牌, hand shield), was a long and slender hand shield that had a characteristic “swallow tail” shape. It was made of poplar, pine or tung wood and measured five chi seven cun in length and about one chi in width. Despite its length, Yan Wei Pai was light and agile. While it provided adequate protection to its wielder, it was too narrow to protect those who stand behind him.

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Ai Pai (挨牌)

Front (right) and back (left) view of Ai Pai, from sixteenth century military treatise 'Chou Hai Tu Bian (《籌海圖編》)'.

Ai Pai (挨牌 or 捱牌, lit. 'Leaning shield'), also came to be known as Gao Li Pai (高麗牌, lit. 'Goryeo shield' or 'Korean shield') during late Ming period for reasons unknown, was a large wooden shield made of poplar wood, measuring five chi long and one chi five cun to three chi wide.

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Teng Pai (藤牌), Yao Dao (腰刀) and Biao Qiang (鏢鎗)

The three principal equipments of a Chinese Teng Pai Shou (藤牌手, rattan shieldman) are his Teng Pai (藤牌) shield, his Yao Dao (腰刀) sword, and his Biao Qiang (鏢鎗) javelin.

Teng Pai (藤牌, lit. 'Rattan shield')

Drawing of a Teng Pai, from 'Ji Xiao Xin Shu (《紀效新書》)'.

Originated from Fujian province, the Teng Pai was one of the more common shield types used by the Ming army. Rattan/wisteria shield outperforms wooden shield in almost every conceivable way—it was cheaper, lighter, more flexible, and sturdier than wooden shield, plus it did not splinter nor split along the grain (as rattan has no wood grain). However, rattan cannot grow in North China (which is colder and drier), so Ming troops from that region had to settle for Tuan Pai (團牌, lit. 'Round shield'), a variant made from woven wicker and covered with leather or rawhide.

The average size of a Ming period rattan shield was two chi five cun  to three chi in diameter. Chinese rattan shield usually did not feature metal shield boss (although exceptions existed), unlike similar shields in Xizang and Southeast Asia region.

Yao Dao (腰刀, lit. 'Waist sabre')

A Yao Dao and scabbard, from 'Ji Xiao Xin Shu (《紀效新書》)'.

Yao Dao was a generic name for one-handed Chinese sabre normally used in conjunction with a rattan shield. 

Biao Qiang (鏢鎗, lit. 'Javelin')

Drawing of a Biao Qiang, from 'Ji Xiao Xin Shu (《紀效新書》)'.

Also known as Fei Biao (飛鏢, lit. 'Flying dart'), Biao Qiang was a type of light javelin. Its primary purpose was to distract the enemy, although it could still be lethal if it hit an unprotected vital spot.

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