Late Roman & Byzantine Uniforms

[cataphractarius]

As silly as it sounds, I think of Dark Ages as Kite Shields and Middle Ages as Heater Shields.

Vikings? 

I guess one problem is that different cultures go through different developmental stages at times - so while this may well be right for some in the pre-1000/1000 to 1300 periods, others might have taken different paths.

[ErikB]

Vikings get round shields with a boss and handle in the middle.  Scotts get flat round with straps.   

Of course there was tons of variation and were many groups in many operational environments, so this is a gross oversimplification.  I was just trying to be funny.