Wrought (!) and cast iron cannon balls, 16th century

[fernando]

Let me show you my just arrived example of wrought iron ball, most certainly forged by the same Peter Pögl. Its provenance is a German auctioner and its acquisition had the support of a Bavarian member we know very well .
Its weight is about 1400 grams; with a diameter of 7-7,5 centimeters, we could colloquially call it a 3 pounder ... could we, Michl ?

The strange thing is that this ball was included in a auction lot, comprehending two items, the other one having a rather strange aspect, the kind of thing i may never know what it is. Destiny had a great part in this event as, considering this iron (so heavy) artifact was too obsolete and senseless to compensate for the shipping cost, we gave instructions to leave it behind and just ship the ball. Guess what? for some reason they ended up shipping it together with the cannon ball and now here i am, punishing you guys with some photos, wondering whether someone around (a metallurgist?) would tell what (the hell) this is.
For myself i can't go further than guessing this is some kind of casting box, or(counter) mould, left out from a specific casting job.
But then, why should it appear in an auction together with an early cannon ball ? .
Its diameter is 18 cms (7") and its height is 7 cms ( 2 3/4") and it weighs nearly 2 Kgs. (4 1/2 pounds.)

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