Dating Earliest Barrels: the Importance of the Position of the Touch Hole

Marcus den toom · 7th August 2015, 08:53 AM

These are some black and white pictures of haquebuts from Belgium. Sadly i could not find any other pictures of these pieces.

The first one is situated at the "Museum vleeshuis" in Dendermonde. It is broken at the breech what would sugest that it blew up. The overall condition also shows that it was found in the ground or at least corroded for a long period of time. The muzzle section with its front sight (?) is a bit larger than the ones in the illustraion in post 27. Plus they where most likely made in Belgium allowing for a somewhat later date of 1520-30.

The second one is also from the museum Vleeshuis and has been corroded very badly. It is also looks cleaned and will most likely no longer have the patina of almost 500 years on it. The expected hook is vague if present at all. The muzzle section is somewhat less prominent and large than the foregoing sample and can be dated to 1510-20.

The third one is also from the same museum and is in much better condition, but still cleaned. The decorations and the muzzle section would sugest a date of 1530-40s. There also appears to be a iron ramrod sticking out?

The fourth is a total mystery mainly because there is only one picture. It is stated to be a four barrel gun, which would be very rare. Though different from the meyrick gun (http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ht=barrel+mace) it still appears to have some of the same features. But without any other picture this is just a guessing game.

More samples can be found here.
http://balat.kikirpa.be/results.php?...inkval=haakbus

I hope i am at least right about some of the dates, it is hard without our friend Michl. Hopefully we can make him proud by continuing his studies and use the foundation he gave us.

7th August 2015, 08:53 AM	#30
Marcus den toom Member Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: Netherlands Posts: 534	These are some black and white pictures of haquebuts from Belgium. Sadly i could not find any other pictures of these pieces. The first one is situated at the "Museum vleeshuis" in Dendermonde. It is broken at the breech what would sugest that it blew up. The overall condition also shows that it was found in the ground or at least corroded for a long period of time. The muzzle section with its front sight (?) is a bit larger than the ones in the illustraion in post 27. Plus they where most likely made in Belgium allowing for a somewhat later date of 1520-30. The second one is also from the museum Vleeshuis and has been corroded very badly. It is also looks cleaned and will most likely no longer have the patina of almost 500 years on it. The expected hook is vague if present at all. The muzzle section is somewhat less prominent and large than the foregoing sample and can be dated to 1510-20. The third one is also from the same museum and is in much better condition, but still cleaned. The decorations and the muzzle section would sugest a date of 1530-40s. There also appears to be a iron ramrod sticking out? The fourth is a total mystery mainly because there is only one picture. It is stated to be a four barrel gun, which would be very rare. Though different from the meyrick gun (http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...ht=barrel+mace) it still appears to have some of the same features. But without any other picture this is just a guessing game. More samples can be found here. http://balat.kikirpa.be/results.php?...inkval=haakbus I hope i am at least right about some of the dates, it is hard without our friend Michl. Hopefully we can make him proud by continuing his studies and use the foundation he gave us. Attached Images