Scutum is the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

 word for "shield

Shield

A shield is a type of personal armor, meant to intercept attacks, either by stopping projectiles such as arrows or redirecting a hit from a sword, mace or battle axe to the side of the shield-bearer....

", although it has in modern times come to be specifically associated with the rectangular, semi-cylindrical

Cylinder (geometry)

A cylinder is one of the most basic curvilinear geometric shapes, the surface formed by the points at a fixed distance from a given line segment, the axis of the cylinder. The solid enclosed by this surface and by two planes perpendicular to the axis is also called a cylinder...

 body shield carried by Roman legionaries.
In the days of Ancient Rome, Roman soldiers often bore round shields called aspidai

Aspis

"Aspis" is the generic term for the word shield. The aspis, which is carried by Greek infantry of various periods, is often referred to as a hoplon .According to Diodorus Siculus:-Construction:...

 (ἄσπιδαι) by the Greeks, in the fashion of Greek hoplites

Hoplite

A hoplite was a citizen-soldier of the Ancient Greek city-states. Hoplites were primarily armed as spearmen and fought in a phalanx formation. The word "hoplite" derives from "hoplon" , the type of the shield used by the soldiers, although, as a word, "hopla" could also denote weapons held or even...

.

The oval scutum is depicted on the Altar of Domitius Ahenobarbus

Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus

Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus was the name of several Roman politicians:*Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus .*Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus , son of the previous.*Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus , son of the previous....

 in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

, the Aemilius Paullus monument at Delphi

Delphi

Delphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis.In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god...

, and there is an actual example found at Kasr el-Harit

Kasr el-Harit

Kasr el-Harit is a small town located in the heart of the Egyptian desert, near the Nile. It is a site of historical importance; namely, because two pieces of brass were excavated that were linked to a scutum ....

 in Egypt

Egypt

Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...

.