In Greek Mythology Medusa the hideous gorgon, turned all who looked upon her to stone.  The hero Pereus used the reflection of his polished bronze shield to slay Medusa.  He then tied her severed head onto his shield thus arming himself with the power to turn his enemies to stone.  The Medusa legend has been visited and revisited as a shield device through the ages. 

I formed this shield from a single piece of steel with a metal working process called raising.  Raising, the opposite process of dishing allows me to shape metal with deep relief and sculptural undercuts.