Cane shields are made of tight concentric rings of narrow, spirally wound wooden rods. They were widely used in both Persia and Turkey up to the eighteenth century and are well represented in Islamic art and by many surviving examples. It is less well known, however, that distinctive types of cane shields were also employed, perhaps from as early as the fourteenth century, in Tibet, where they remained as military equipment until the early twentieth century and for ceremonial purposes as late as the 1950s. Despite their longevity, Tibetan cane shields with pierced and decorated iron fittings are extremely rare. The quality and complexity of their iron fittings vary widely. The fittings are both ornamental and practical: They strengthen the shield by making it more rigid. This example is one of the best preserved and more elaborate of its type. The iron fittings are closely related to those found on Tibetan leather boxes, certain types of wooden furniture, and a few rare examples of leather armor. The shield is important, therefore, not only in terms of the history of Tibetan arms and armor, but also for its relationship to Tibetan metalwork and other decorative arts.