Incendiary quarrels/arrows/crossbow bolts

[Matchlock]

This large iron grenade, 18th century, diameter 21 cm, was sold for 230 Eruo plus 23 per cent commision, on May5, 2014, Hermann Historica's, Munich.

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[Andi]

Our first experimental of burning a reconstructed medieval pitch garland (fire crown, quoit; German: Pechkranz) on 4. May 2014. The pitch garland was made of a ring of straw, bandaged with nitrated linnen and coated with tar and sulfur, covered by second winding of linnen with tar powdered with charcoal dust. It was built according to descriptions in medieval fireworks books such as Martin Merz: Büchsenmeisterbuch, South Germany 1420. The experiment did not meet our expectations and proved some constructional fault as it took too long until the pitch garland starts burning after igniting the match and its burning time was too long and the flames and smoke emission was too harmless.

Here a link zu a short video on youtube

http://youtu.be/JRIv19BFubA

The following image shows the highlit of the test.

[Matchlock]

Hi there,


I almost forgot to introduce this very rare item that has been in my collection since the 1980's. I have not touched it for many years because is stored hidden behind my small Giech Schlänglein or Tarrasbüchse (from Latin terra, meaning earth), re-using a Nuremberg cast bronze haquebut barrel of ca. 1470 struck with the arms of the Counts von Giech. This cute early 16th century 'cannon' comes from Schloss Thurnau near Bayreuth, Franconia/Northern Bavaria, via Sotheby's in 1996.

I discovered it in one of the numerous narrow but lofty 13th-14th century houses forming the Late Medieval city center of Regensburg, Bavaria. After graduating from university in 1982, I rented an apartment in an eight-storeyed 13th century house and soon started exploring both the two-storeyed cellar with its vaulted ceiling arching seven meters high, as well as the three-storeyed roof timbering where many old things were stored.
One day I almost fell when stepping on a thick but rather unsound and friable plank. Beneath it, in the false ceiling there was an amorphic mass of rotten textiles, straw, mummified pidgeons and deadwood, but also a greyish stone ball with something sticking out on its top. Amazed by the weight of the thing, I carefully took out a thumb sized tapering piece that literally had no weight. It contained some dark porous stuff center and uncovered a vertical hole in the ball. At first I thought that I had found a cannon ball but when I took the stone downstairs to my flat I met the elderly couple that owned the house. They told me that I could keep the item. In my apartment, I shined a flashlight into the hole, stuck my forefinger in and when I extracted it it was covered with fine black meal powder. By then I realized that this must be a very old grenade.
A few years later I read about the Thirty Years War clay grenades dug up in Ingolstadt, together with their fuses (see posts # ... and ... ), and acquired two specimens but I have never across another limestone grenade. It is especially notable for retaining its original fuse.

With a weight of 3.1 kilos, it is much heavier than the Ingolstadt clay grenades and, just like them, must have been dropped down on the enemies from a house or a wall.

Please also see my thread
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showthread.php?t=12687&highlight=giech


I will also post the huge iron grenade or cannon ball soon that can be seen on the photos.
The sacristy cupboard on the right dates from ca. 1540; the wooden 'feet' have been shortened, and the former top piece with the Gothic crenelation is missing.


Enthroned on top of the cupboard is my highly important four-barrel Landsknecht mace of ca. 1540 that comes from the world famous Samuel and Llewellyn Meyrick collection, in 1830:

http://www.royalarmouries.org/about-...l-rush-meyrick

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...t=meyrick+mace




Best,
Michael

[Matchlock]

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[Andi]

Here are two images I made yesterday at Nuremberg Kaiserburg (Imperial Castle) Museum of fire balls used for Lustfeuerwerk (decorative fireworks) dated to 18th century. Diameter of the small balls are approx. 5-6 cm only! The large one has a diameter of approx. 8 cm height approx. 10-12 cm.

[Andi]

Remains of an Ottomani fire arrow found during archaeologcial excavations of a water well at Wilhelm-Lebsaftgasse 3, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria in 1970. Length 383 mm max. diameter ca. 50 mm. Dated to ca. 1683. At display at Stadtmuseums Klosterneuburg, Austria.

Further info in German: http://insmuseum.com/post/2418761675...-lat-malleolus
and a short one in English: http://stadtmuseum.klosterneuburg.at...d_engl_04.html

[Matchlock]

Well done, Andi!


Thanks so much for detecting, and sharing, that great 2nd half 17th c. Ottoman incendiary arrow.

I have linked your post to my thread:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...621#post170621

That rare instance has been preserved at the Stadtmuseum of Klosterneuburg (museum of the City of Klosterneuburg) located at the Danube River, near Vienna, Lower Austria) ever since The Second Great Siege of Vienna by the Turks, 14 July through 12 September 1683!
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Ca..._of_Vienna.png

Please also cf. my thread:
http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...k+Suhl+Austria



Best,
Michael

[Andi]

Just found on Internet Archive:
Page 15 of American Art Association: European arms and armour, mainly XV-XVI & XVII centuries. New York : Anderson Galleries, 1928. https://archive.org/details/europeanarmsarmo00amer_0

Its funny they write that this objects were found in a castle near Switzerland (where? In Austria, Liechtenstein, Germany, Italy, or France) and that times (1928) it is most convincable that such pitch garlands were not shown in European museums or collections, as they were not so decorative like metallic arms and armour.