Foot protection in battle

[Giannis K. Hoplite]

Keeping your shield at some disatnce to your body also protects the feet without having to lower your shield. It would require that the oponent actually bends to see and reach your feet,and naturally,nobody would do that! It is perhaps not by chance that the greeks developed foot-and-toe and ankle protections even though they also fighting in dence formations. The Greeks however didn't have as long shields as the romans,and they couldn't keep their shield at a distance to their body. What they did seem to do is rest the shield on the shoulder and raise the rim almost horizontally. In close quarters this positioning of the shield would have been very effective against any overhand used weapons,like those the greeks were using,and it it very commonly depicted in art.
Khaire
Giannis