The heater shield was used by almost every class of society in medieval Europe, from knights to typical soldiers. This design lent itself to being relatively inexpensive and easy to make. It was relatively lightweight compared to other similar shields at the time such as the kite shield, being easy to move around during both mounted and on-foot combat, and had a fairly high amount of surface area, making for a solid defense. 

-- From Wikipedia.

The Fire and Steel golden lion heater shield is constructed sturdily for safe play, costume use and cosplay. 53cm x 35cm. Entire shield is made of sturdy high density foam, with nylon straps on the back for easy carry.