aegis, ĭdis, f., = αἰγίς, ίδος.
I The aegis.
A The shield of Jupiter , Verg. A. 8, 354; Sil. 12, 720.—
B The shield of Minerva , with Medusa's head , Verg. A. 8, 435: contra sonantem Palladis aegida, Hor. C. 3, 4, 57; so Ov. M. 2, 753; 6, 78 al.—Hence,
II Transf.
A A shield , defence. —So only Ovid of the jewelry by which maidens try to conceal their ugliness: decipit hac oculos aegide dives Amor, R. Am. 346.—
B In the larch-tree, the wood nearest the pith , Plin. 16, 39, 73, § 187.