Automatically Opening Pan Covers on German Matchlocks, ca. 1560-1650

Matchlock · 7th August 2010, 09:51 PM

I owe the inspiration to write this thread to our member Philip.

This feature is extremley rare to find on German military matchlock muskets, and all those pieces are equipped with a matchlock mechanism the lock plate of which has the shape of a wheel-lock.

Obviously, the autmatically opening pan cover has been taken over from the wheel-lock; in some cases it even appears on matchlock mechanisms which actually are pretending to be wheel-locks and are only identifiable as matchlocks at second sight.

The earliest known sample is in my collection. Its is the first illustrated below, clearly pretending to be a wheel-lock and made in ca. 1560, most probably in Augsburg. It's a snap matclock. The pan cover has to be shut manually, then the serpentine with a length of matchcord is cocked and when the trigger is pulled it snaps down into the pan, simultaneously opening the cover. Even the safety catch is the same as on wheel-locks.
I posted it here before.

The next sample is only known from Suhl matchlocks of ca. 1590 to 1620. This heavy wallgun (Lunten-Hakenbüchse) is dated 1592 on the barrel and struck with Suhl marks on both barrel and lockplate.
A very similar Suhl mechanism, ca. 1610, is illustrated in detail below.

Next there is a similar but somewhat later piece, Suhl, ca. 1620-25; it was sold Christies in 2000, from the Keith W. Neal collection. The position of the serpentine is a working time alteration; originally it would have rested on the right side nail the hole of which is visible.

At the bottom, a matchlock musket, ca. 1650, that I photographed in the reserve collection of the fortress of Hohensalzburg more than 20 years ago.

Best, Michael

7th August 2010, 09:51 PM	#2
Matchlock (deceased) Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bavaria, Germany - the center of 15th and 16th century gunmaking Posts: 4,310	Automatically Opening Pan Covers on German Matchlocks, ca. 1560-1650 I owe the inspiration to write this thread to our member Philip. This feature is extremley rare to find on German military matchlock muskets, and all those pieces are equipped with a matchlock mechanism the lock plate of which has the shape of a wheel-lock. Obviously, the autmatically opening pan cover has been taken over from the wheel-lock; in some cases it even appears on matchlock mechanisms which actually are pretending to be wheel-locks and are only identifiable as matchlocks at second sight. The earliest known sample is in my collection. Its is the first illustrated below, clearly pretending to be a wheel-lock and made in ca. 1560, most probably in Augsburg. It's a snap matclock. The pan cover has to be shut manually, then the serpentine with a length of matchcord is cocked and when the trigger is pulled it snaps down into the pan, simultaneously opening the cover. Even the safety catch is the same as on wheel-locks. I posted it here before. The next sample is only known from Suhl matchlocks of ca. 1590 to 1620. This heavy wallgun (Lunten-Hakenbüchse) is dated 1592 on the barrel and struck with Suhl marks on both barrel and lockplate. A very similar Suhl mechanism, ca. 1610, is illustrated in detail below. Next there is a similar but somewhat later piece, Suhl, ca. 1620-25; it was sold Christies in 2000, from the Keith W. Neal collection. The position of the serpentine is a working time alteration; originally it would have rested on the right side nail the hole of which is visible. At the bottom, a matchlock musket, ca. 1650, that I photographed in the reserve collection of the fortress of Hohensalzburg more than 20 years ago. Best, Michael Attached Images Last edited by Matchlock; 8th August 2010 at 07:15 PM.