15. King Solomon made 200 large shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than 15 pounds.
16. He also made 300 smaller shields of hammered gold, each weighing more than 71/2 pounds. The king placed these shields in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon.
17. Then the king made a huge throne, decorated with ivory and overlaid with pure gold.
18. The throne had six steps, with a footstool of gold. There were armrests on both sides of the seat, and the figure of a lion stood on each side of the throne.
19. There were also twelve other lions, one standing on each end of the six steps. No other throne in all the world could be compared with it!
20. All of King Solomon’s drinking cups were solid gold, as were all the utensils in the Palace of the Forest of Lebanon. They were not made of silver, for silver was considered worthless in Solomon’s day!
21. The king had a fleet of trading ships of Tarshish manned by the sailors sent by Hiram. Once every three years the ships returned, loaded with gold, silver, ivory, apes, and peacocks.