Among the Plains Nations, a war shield was made of buffalo hide from around the neck because it was thicker. It protected him from harm and gave him special sacred powers. The painting on the shield and the Scared objects tied to it, all had special meaning to the owner and those Sacred qualities were in turn given to the owner of the shield. Most of the lances are tipped with a flint spearhead. The overall length is about six or seven feet with twenty-four eagle feathers attached to one side of the shaft.
Red cloth is used to attach the feathers to the shaft.
The shaft may be oiled or painted. Native Americans always make the drum in a scared manner with prayers and smudging with the smoke from sacred sage and cedar for purification. The drum is the sacred heartbeat of the Native nation. It is sometimes referred to as the powerful medicine of thunder. It is always treated with respect as a sacred thing.