1417 - The World's Oldest Dated Handgun!!!

Matchlock · 13th January 2014, 02:24 PM

Hi Marcus,

Wikipedia, as usually, is right: the Latin/Roman way of representing numerals and dates greatly varies and often depends ... E.g., on epitaphs you sometimes find remarkable variations that only allow to conclude the correct reading of a certain date from additional biographical information provided by the inscription.

This is also true for the general (incorrect and rural) use of Latin as a language.

Also note a frequently employed mixture of the Latin and Arabic numerals in the early 15th century; attached is the sample of the founding inscription of the Church of the Holy Spirit (Heilig-Geist-Kirche) in Landshut, Lower Bavaria, where the founding date 1407 is composed of the Roman m for the cypher 1 while the rest is written in Arabic numerals!

Best,
Michael

13th January 2014, 02:24 PM	#3
Matchlock (deceased) Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bavaria, Germany - the center of 15th and 16th century gunmaking Posts: 4,310	Hi Marcus, Wikipedia, as usually, is right: the Latin/Roman way of representing numerals and dates greatly varies and often depends ... E.g., on epitaphs you sometimes find remarkable variations that only allow to conclude the correct reading of a certain date from additional biographical information provided by the inscription. This is also true for the general (incorrect and rural) use of Latin as a language. Also note a frequently employed mixture of the Latin and Arabic numerals in the early 15th century; attached is the sample of the founding inscription of the Church of the Holy Spirit (Heilig-Geist-Kirche) in Landshut, Lower Bavaria, where the founding date 1407 is composed of the Roman m for the cypher 1 while the rest is written in Arabic numerals! Best, Michael Attached Images Last edited by Matchlock; 13th January 2014 at 02:42 PM.