Wheel Lock Pistol
1575-1599 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Arms and armour are rarely associated with art. However, they were influenced by the same design sources as other art forms including architecture, sculpture, goldsmiths' work, stained glass and ceramics. These sources had to be adapted to awkward shaped devices required to perform complicated technical functions. Armour and weapons were collected as works of art as much as military tools.
This wheel-lock pistol has a mechanism that enabled it to be carried loaded. The jaws of the lock clamped a piece of flint or a piece or pyrites designed to rub against the rough edge of the wheel projecting into the pan. The wheel was revolved at speed by a tightly coiled spring, wound by a separate spanner, and released when the gun's trigger was pulled causing sparks to ignite the gunpowder in the breech.
Sketches for wheel-locks were made by Leonardo da Vinci but their first common use was in Germany in around 1520 and they continued in use until the late seventeenth century. They were the first devices to fire guns mechanically and accelerated the development of firearms by negating the need for long and dangerous 'match' cords which had to be kept dry. The increasingly powerful gunpowder of the mid-16th century encouraged the development of smaller guns including the pistol, and many were fitted with wheel locks. A loaded pistol could be concealed under a cloak, to the concern of European rulers. Elizabeth I forbade anyone from carrying a mechanical firearm within 500 yards of a royal palace and in 1584 William the Silent was the first monarch to be assassinated with a wheel lock gun.
As technical devices wheel-locks attracted princely collectors. Many are finely chiselled and engraved as works of art, some even on their insides, to be taken apart and reassembled at pleasure. The stocks were also often decorated with fine bone and horn inlays drawing on the skills of furniture makers and engravers. Wheel-lock guns were expensive, however, and most ordinary gunners were equipped with the older style match-locks until well into the seventeenth century.
This wheel-lock pistol has a mechanism that enabled it to be carried loaded. The jaws of the lock clamped a piece of flint or a piece or pyrites designed to rub against the rough edge of the wheel projecting into the pan. The wheel was revolved at speed by a tightly coiled spring, wound by a separate spanner, and released when the gun's trigger was pulled causing sparks to ignite the gunpowder in the breech.
Sketches for wheel-locks were made by Leonardo da Vinci but their first common use was in Germany in around 1520 and they continued in use until the late seventeenth century. They were the first devices to fire guns mechanically and accelerated the development of firearms by negating the need for long and dangerous 'match' cords which had to be kept dry. The increasingly powerful gunpowder of the mid-16th century encouraged the development of smaller guns including the pistol, and many were fitted with wheel locks. A loaded pistol could be concealed under a cloak, to the concern of European rulers. Elizabeth I forbade anyone from carrying a mechanical firearm within 500 yards of a royal palace and in 1584 William the Silent was the first monarch to be assassinated with a wheel lock gun.
As technical devices wheel-locks attracted princely collectors. Many are finely chiselled and engraved as works of art, some even on their insides, to be taken apart and reassembled at pleasure. The stocks were also often decorated with fine bone and horn inlays drawing on the skills of furniture makers and engravers. Wheel-lock guns were expensive, however, and most ordinary gunners were equipped with the older style match-locks until well into the seventeenth century.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Steel barrel, walnut stock inlaid with engraved staghorn |
| Brief description | Wheel lock pistol with inlaid stock of engraved staghorn, South German (Nuremburg), 1575-1599. |
| Physical description | The walnut stock is inlaid with engraved staghorn depicting sea monsters and grotesque masks. The butt plate of brass is engraved with foliate scrolls and a coat of arms, but appears to be a later restoration. A belt hook is attached to the stock on the opposite side of the lock; on the flattened end is a maker's mark, a hand with the letter W. The lock is of usual construction with an external safety catch. On the lock, the Nürnberg town-mark and a locksmith's mark, an owl between the letters H F in a shaped shield. The barrel which is swamped at the muzzle, bears the Nürnberg town mark and a barrel-smith's mark, partly obliterated. |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Bequeathed by Major Victor Alexander Farquharson |
| Object history | The belt hook indicates that the pistol was intended to be carried by a foot soldier. The same mark appears on a belt hook of a pistol in the Museum für Deutsche Geschichte, Berlin, dated 1586. |
| Historical context | Arms and armour are rarely associated with art. However, they were influenced by the same design sources as other art forms including architecture, sculpture, goldsmiths' work, stained glass and ceramics. These sources had to be adapted to awkward shaped devices required to perform complicated technical functions. Armour and weapons were collected as works of art as much as military tools. This wheel-lock pistol has a mechanism that enabled it to be carried loaded. The jaws of the lock clamped a piece of flint or a piece or pyrites designed to rub against the rough edge of the wheel projecting into the pan. The wheel was revolved at speed by a tightly coiled spring, wound by a separate spanner, and released when the gun's trigger was pulled causing sparks to ignite the gunpowder in the breech. Sketches for wheel-locks were made by Leonardo da Vinci but their first common use was in Germany in around 1520 and they continued in use until the late seventeenth century. They were the first devices to fire guns mechanically and accelerated the development of firearms by negating the need for long and dangerous 'match' cords which had to be kept dry. The increasingly powerful gunpowder of the mid-16th century encouraged the development of smaller guns including the pistol, and many were fitted with wheel locks. A loaded pistol could be concealed under a cloak, to the concern of European rulers. Elizabeth I forbade anyone from carrying a mechanical firearm within 500 yards of a royal palace and in 1584 William the Silent was the first monarch to be assassinated with a wheel lock gun. As technical devices wheel-locks attracted princely collectors. Many are finely chiselled and engraved as works of art, some even on their insides, to be taken apart and reassembled at pleasure. The stocks were also often decorated with fine bone and horn inlays drawing on the skills of furniture makers and engravers. Wheel-lock guns were expensive, however, and most ordinary gunners were equipped with the older style match-locks until well into the seventeenth century. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Summary | Arms and armour are rarely associated with art. However, they were influenced by the same design sources as other art forms including architecture, sculpture, goldsmiths' work, stained glass and ceramics. These sources had to be adapted to awkward shaped devices required to perform complicated technical functions. Armour and weapons were collected as works of art as much as military tools. This wheel-lock pistol has a mechanism that enabled it to be carried loaded. The jaws of the lock clamped a piece of flint or a piece or pyrites designed to rub against the rough edge of the wheel projecting into the pan. The wheel was revolved at speed by a tightly coiled spring, wound by a separate spanner, and released when the gun's trigger was pulled causing sparks to ignite the gunpowder in the breech. Sketches for wheel-locks were made by Leonardo da Vinci but their first common use was in Germany in around 1520 and they continued in use until the late seventeenth century. They were the first devices to fire guns mechanically and accelerated the development of firearms by negating the need for long and dangerous 'match' cords which had to be kept dry. The increasingly powerful gunpowder of the mid-16th century encouraged the development of smaller guns including the pistol, and many were fitted with wheel locks. A loaded pistol could be concealed under a cloak, to the concern of European rulers. Elizabeth I forbade anyone from carrying a mechanical firearm within 500 yards of a royal palace and in 1584 William the Silent was the first monarch to be assassinated with a wheel lock gun. As technical devices wheel-locks attracted princely collectors. Many are finely chiselled and engraved as works of art, some even on their insides, to be taken apart and reassembled at pleasure. The stocks were also often decorated with fine bone and horn inlays drawing on the skills of furniture makers and engravers. Wheel-lock guns were expensive, however, and most ordinary gunners were equipped with the older style match-locks until well into the seventeenth century. |
| Bibliographic reference | Hayward, J. F., European Firearms, London, HMSO, 1969, cat. 5 |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | M.642-1927 |
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| Record created | November 5, 2002 |
| Record URL |
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