testudo
Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
testudo /tɛˈstjuːdəʊ, -ˈstuː-/
▶noun (pl. testudos or testudines /-dɪniːz/) (in ancient Rome) a screen on wheels and with an arched roof, used to protect besieging troops.
■ a protective screen formed by a body of troops holding their shields above their heads.
– origin ME: from L., lit. ‘tortoise’, from testa ‘tile, shell’.
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