A Beautiful Mid-14th Century Handgonne

[fernando]

Hi Michl,

Originally Posted by Matchlock

... Great minds think alike (and so do ours! )

Such an appreciation is a trap for me . If i politely contest, in that my mind is a rather humble one, i end up simultaneously minimizing yours, which would undoubtedly be unreal .

Originally Posted by Matchlock

... I had the same impression when first looking at the pictures but the staff of the auction house assured me that the barrel actually consisted of one singular piece throughout. I think the caliber could be about 30 mm. The balls at that period of time were most probably made of stone; I got a few in my collection. That's where the special name of this kind of earliest guns came from: stone gonne (German Steinbüchse). ...

A great specimen, anyway.
At first sight i thought the caliber was some wider, but 30 mm should be the right thing.

'Nando

[Spiridonov]

Thank you, Michael! It seems that the barrel and the nail is not a one piece

[Matchlock]

Originally Posted by Spiridonov

Thank you, Michael! It seems that the barrel and the nail is not a one piece

Hi Alexander,

Again great minds think alike (and so do ours ...)

That's exactly correct im my eyes but you put it into better words than I did; when I said that the "hook" was just an old nail I meant that it was attached to the wood only and not integrally wrought to the barrel.

Thank you and best wishes as ever,
- and of course I'm looking forward to seeing you soon in my collection, my Russian friend - and I'm admitting counting the weeks!!!

Gratefully it seems like a widely scattered pouplation of a few whales drifting around in endless oceans and bearing in mind the same glowing interest finally gets together to meet for mating !!!!!!!!!! NOW AIN'T THAT CUTE?!

Actually I own this beautiful saying to one of our forum's founding members and my good fathering friend: Ed!

Hi 'Nando,

I would be extremely glad to be able and welcome you next as the two of us have proved to be actual mind mates on both the cannon and heart ( SWEETLY PURRING CATS!!!) track!

Thank ya all so much out there,
Michl/Michail/Michael

[Matchlock]

The first little Steinbüchse was sold Christie's Rome, June 18, 1975.
It only measures 23 cm overall, no further measurements provided. And it, too, is made of wound band iron.
As it is very small, with a relatively little touchhole, there is a high probability for it to be of very early date (ca. 1350). All beginnings, whether in nature or technology, are small, and this is especially true for earliest firearms.

Next follows another, later Steinbüchse, ca. 1450, telling from its reinforcement rings and its general shape, of wrought iron, is in the Army Museum Bukarest, Romania. I doubt whether the stone ball shown next to it would actually fit the bore of this specimen. I estimate its length to be ca. 40 cm.

The third is a fragment of a larger ship cannon of ca. 1400 and made of iron staves and hoops (German Stabring-Geschütz), preserved in the museum at Maldon, Essex. Although it was found in an early 16th century shipwreck, together with stone balls and remnants of its original elm wood carriage, it is some 100 years older than that ship. The relic demonstrates its special way of construction, as well as another similar Stabring-Geschütz in the Musée de l'Armée Paris does, which is shown here next in line.

Next follows a series of 6 images depicting the cannon courtyard at the Musée de l'Armée Paris and details of a very special Steinbüchse, ca. 1380, which may even retain its original stock of characteristic Gothic form with stepped folded edges. I estimate its overall length to measure about 1 meter. In one of the pics it is seen together with an early 15th century breech loading cannon, its breech now missing.

Please cf. my former thread on early breech loading.

To be continued!

Best,
Michael

[fernando]

Thank you so much for the great pictures, Michl,
Plenty material to study ... once more .
It'e precisely because of this, together with the sharing images of your collection and all the data you provide, that we need you around still for many years to contemplate us with all that early weapons pedagogy.
Not the slightest doubt that you are one of the (if not the) main props of this forum.
Yes, i would surelly love to get personaly acquainted to your highly selected collection.
Talking about cats, meet my last acquisition. For almost a week she was astray, crossing the road in panic; don't know where she came from.
Picture taken before urgent care; conjunctivitis eye drops, bronchitis tablets, flu antibiothic, parasite killer and blood tests.
You know pets; one week out in the streets and they catch the whole desease packet. So good our daughter is a pet Vet ... that helps a lot
Her name (the cat) is Rita and she says hello to you all.
Fernando
.

[Matchlock]

Hi 'Nando and welcome, sweet lovely Rita!

Thank you so much for taking care of that little smooth as silk lady. Hers is certainly the most beautiful and heart warming picture I've ever seen on the forum ...
I'm sure she is in the best of hands with you and your Vet daughter!

Thanks again and best,
Michl

[Matchlock]

The first Steinbüchse most probably Swiss, ca. 1420-30 (dating criteria: various reinforcement rings, large touchhole, and the cross of Switzerland - cross of Saint George - struck near the muzzle), sold Sotheby's London, Dec 8, 1988, Lot 276, for GBP 5,000. Length overall 34.2 cm, barrel (Flug) 11,3 cm long, bore ca. 6 cm, breech length 22.9 cm. The ring was clearly for suspension purposes but all kinds of speculations are allowed. Please see catalog description attached.

Please note the punched decoration of circles in the wrought iron surface; you will find almost the same arrangement on the breech of a similar but somewhat bigger Steinbüchse to be posted here soon.

Please also note the second to last illustration of a mounted knightly king firing a tiller handgun with various balls leaving the muzzle (ca. 1440)! We know of other instances in contemporary illuminated manuscripts illustrating the same phenomenon of either several caliber fitting balls or a larger amount of shot being fired from mid-14th to early-15th centrury handgonnes. That makes sense because the relatively short barrels were not apt to fire with the exactitude required.

Last not least please note the earliest small rectangularly bent igniting irons of that period of time. As I stated before, there is only one single specimen of that characteristic form known to have survived, and it is in my collection; see last attachment, the upperrmost of four.

To be cont'd ...

Best,
Michael

[Matchlock]

Originally Posted by fernando

Hi Michl,


Such an appreciation is a trap for me . If i politely contest, in that my mind is a rather humble one, i end up simultaneously minimizing yours, which would undoubtedly be unreal .

'Nando

Hi 'Nando,

Though your comment made me blush I guess that unreal is almost the correct expression, considering all the absolutely crazy thoughts and ideas my mind is forced to comprise!!! - but in no way is it apt to describe the mental relations between you and me concerning earliest weapons and the love for cats! Just imagine where I would be today without my dear friends Ed and Jim inviting me to the forum?! Before that point, I was extremely lonesome and literally lost in the oceans of very few individuals thinking alike and seeking for a mind mate ...


Best,
Michl