Fans of Tolkien have probably been wondering whether or not the famous shield of Thorin would make an appearance in the movies (the description of which comes from Appendix A in The Return of the King):

“It is said that Thorin’s shield was cloven [during the battle of Azanulbizar] and he cast it away and he hewed off with his axe a branch of an oak and held it in his left hand to ward off the strokes of his foes, or to wield as a club.”