Arab? Musket

rickystl · 8th September 2018, 05:19 PM

Hi Snowman. Welcome to the Forum.

That's a nice looking Arab matchlock. (And I use the term Arab in a very generalized sense). As others mention, the decoration does remind one of South Indian influence. And that could be it's origin (?) But no telling where it ended up. LOL
I don't yet have one of these in my collection yet. But there is usually a variety that come up for auction throughout the year. Which gives you an idea of how long they were in use.
I've never really understood the purpose of the half-moon shaped wood butt caps on these guns. Even the latter, captured British pattern 1853 Enfield rifles were often altered in this manner. Curious.

A nice looking example.

Rick

8th September 2018, 05:19 PM	#10
rickystl Member Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: St. Louis, MO area. Posts: 1,633	Hi Snowman. Welcome to the Forum. That's a nice looking Arab matchlock. (And I use the term Arab in a very generalized sense). As others mention, the decoration does remind one of South Indian influence. And that could be it's origin (?) But no telling where it ended up. LOL I don't yet have one of these in my collection yet. But there is usually a variety that come up for auction throughout the year. Which gives you an idea of how long they were in use. I've never really understood the purpose of the half-moon shaped wood butt caps on these guns. Even the latter, captured British pattern 1853 Enfield rifles were often altered in this manner. Curious. A nice looking example. Rick