Macabre French Grave Robber Trap Gun 18th C.

[Jim McDougall]

Thanks so much for responding guys!
This just seemed so bizarre I couldnt resist bringing it up. I've have had a fascination with anything out of the ordinary (go figure ! Interesting info on the 'fish hook version', Mark. It seems these innovative devices must have had lots of applications, and that one is really bizarre.
Sounds like an anti jaws device allright.

Museum of Historical Arms, now that being back memories from my earliest collecting days, and who can forget the Hoffmans. Hard to believe what those multicolor little catalogs go for these days.....I still have a pile I believe of a few at least. For many years they were the essential reference for identification....obviously there were some pretty blatant error, but based on what was known at the time.......this was pre-Ethnographic Sword Forum

You're right Kronckew, a load of this shrapnel was pretty much like the bouncing betty of the time. I would hope they didn't forget to disarm this thing for daytime mourning visits though...or the cemetery would be having a few more unexpected guests.

Stu, I was intrigued by the name W.W. Greener, the famed maker of the English 'guage'......thinking of one of John Wayne's immortal lines in "True Grit"..."...gimme the Greener!". Sounds like they also made the security alarm systems of the time.

All best regards,
Jim

[pallas]

in the 1860s-1880s there where craftsman in ohio who made "grave torpedos" for sale to people who wanted to avert grave robbers from digging up their reecently buried dead to sell as cadavers to medical schools......one such device was recently profiled on another episode of "history detectives" on PBS......

[Jim McDougall]

Originally Posted by pallas

in the 1860s-1880s there where craftsman in ohio who made "grave torpedos" for sale to people who wanted to avert grave robbers from digging up their reecently buried dead to sell as cadavers to medical schools......one such device was recently profiled on another episode of "history detectives" on PBS......

Thank you so much Pallas!! I was afraid this thread had, uh, ...died

Best regards,
Jim

[broadaxe]

Hmmm, my small contribution to the thread: I once bought in a local auction a trap/alarm gun of a similar concept; though it was a breech loader and has been chambered for 12ga. The short smoothbore barrel was opened sideways for loading/unloading. It was obviously French, signed "depose", circa 1900.

[Jim McDougall]

Thank you Broadaxe!! I would say thats a monumental contribution, you're the first person I have ever known to have owned one of these
Thank you for coming in on this......it always is important to have input regardless whether someone thinks pertinant or not.You never know what clues are hidden in such notes.
All the best,
Jim

[broadaxe]

Originally Posted by Jim McDougall

Thank you Broadaxe!! I would say thats a monumental contribution, you're the first person I have ever known to have owned one of these
Thank you for coming in on this......it always is important to have input regardless whether someone thinks pertinant or not.You never know what clues are hidden in such notes.
All the best,
Jim

In fact, at that auction there were two identical trap guns, both mounted on small wooden planks, so they looked like model cannons from a certain distance. Petty I didn't keep a photo. Their construction appeared to be industrialized, maybe cast, so it was probably meant to shoot blanks only (?).

[fernando]

Originally Posted by broadaxe

Hmmm, my small contribution to the thread: I once bought in a local auction a trap/alarm gun of a similar concept; though it was a breech loader and has been chambered for 12ga. The short smoothbore barrel was opened sideways for loading/unloading. It was obviously French, signed "depose", circa 1900.

You mean like this one?

.

[broadaxe]

Yep, this is the one.