POST MEDIEVAL TOY

1550

Incomplete copper alloy toy gun or ‘petronel’. The gun is 118mm long and weighs 36.08g. The barrel of the gun, 73mm of the entire length, is complete and circular in section. When viewed in profile, the butt of the gun is formed from an elongated triangle, subsquare in section, and ends in an egg shaped terminal. The butt does extend at the broad end to run parallel with the barrel of the gun, for a short distance. This provides a hollow housing for the ramrod to sit in. The opposite end of the rod would have been held in the transverse loop visible on the underside of the barrel, a short distance back from the mouth. The rod itself is entirely missing. Extending horizontally, 90 degrees from the gun, just above the end of the ramrod housing, is a shaft with a deep groove running through it. To one side at the backend of the barrel, where it meets the integral butt, is the touchhole, where the gunpowder would have been lit.These objects, capable of being fired, are thought to be miniature versions used by gun smiths to show prospective buyers the range of weapons. It is much more likely, however, that they are simply toys. They date from the 16th –17th century.