A highly important four barrel Landsknecht mace, ca. 1540

[Matchlock]

As I stated in post #19, all we have on that mystery piece is this old photograph from about 1900 or the beginning of the 20th century.
It was then in the collection of the Fürst Reuß j.L., inv.no. 244.
Its whereabouts have been unknown since at least WW II.
Featuring no iron barrel lid and spikes, it seems to be a plainer version of my MEYRICK MACE, only fitted with two reinforcing bands; also, the touch holes obviously never had sliding covers.
The molded decoration visible on the two iron mounts is characteristic of the style of ca. 1520-1540; it is also found on stocks of contemporary arquebuses, both on barrels and the stocks, as well as on early Nuremberg round iron shields (rondaches) of ca. 1540-50. The latter are often misdated as 'late 16th century'.

I attached photos of two almost identical Nuremberg Landsknecht matchlock arquebuses, the barrels of both pieces struck with identical Nuremberg crossed arrows marks and the date 1539.
The characteristic molded ornamentation is present on both the rear end of the limewood buttstocks, and at the muzzles.
One of them, the stock heavily wormed and damaged, is preserved in the Germanisches Nationalmuseum Nürnberg, inv.no. W494, the other is in my collection.
Please see my thread:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...1539+harquebus


From Moritz von Ehrenthal's essay "Die Waffensammlung des Fürsten Reuß j.L. zu Schloß Osterstein bei Gera", in: Zeitschrift für Historische Waffenkunde (ZHWK), Alte Folge, Bd. IV, 1906-1908, p. 261-266.

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