POST MEDIEVAL TOY

1600

A copper-alloy miniature toy musket, dating from the post-medieval period.The barrel is sub-cylindrical, having faceted outer surfaces and with four transverse grooves located halfway along. The downward-angling handle has a pentagonal cross section and tapers towards a wider 'fishtail' butt. On the underside, the trigger guard, which would have straddled the handle and butt, is incomplete. At the handle end of the barrel is a circular pan for the priming powder and, in front of this, a rectangular moulding. Two ring-and-dot punchmarks decorate each side of the tapering handle, with a further three on the butt. Dimensions not known (recorded from photographs). Weight: 22g.Similar toy muskets were found in London and are illustrated and discussed by Egan and Forsyth (2005: 88-97). According to the authors, the fishtail-shaped butt seen on all of these pieces is found on standard English muskets of the period 1600-1640, although the toys may have been made over a longer period (ibid. 89-90).