An Extremely Rare 17th Century German Military Match Hider

Matchlock · 7th October 2009, 02:07 PM

This is the only known detached late 16th or early 17th century match hider, except for a handful of them retained on some of the bandoliers of the Guard of the Electors of Saxony.

It is made of thin tinned and brazed iron with a cap and four rings for a suspension cord. In its lower section and in the bottom there are a few irregular holes for ventilation and a thick piece of hemp matchcord is preserved inside. The overall length of the piece is 17 cm.

Match hiders are recorded to have been carried by only one musketeer out of a group of 15 or 20 in order to enable the others to light their matches in case of emergency. As smoldering match would not only produce a visible glow and smoke but a traitorous smell as well, match hiders are believed to have been used especially on night marches.

The item in discussion was sold Hermann Historica, Munich, on October 5, 2009, at a hammer price of 1,700 euro.

In addition to images of this rarissimum, I enclose a few photos of similar match hiders on late 16th century Saxon bandoliers that I photographed in museums over decades.

Best,
Michael

7th October 2009, 02:07 PM	#1
Matchlock (deceased) Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: Bavaria, Germany - the center of 15th and 16th century gunmaking Posts: 4,310	An Extremely Rare 17th Century German Military Match Hider (Match Box) This is the only known detached late 16th or early 17th century match hider, except for a handful of them retained on some of the bandoliers of the Guard of the Electors of Saxony. It is made of thin tinned and brazed iron with a cap and four rings for a suspension cord. In its lower section and in the bottom there are a few irregular holes for ventilation and a thick piece of hemp matchcord is preserved inside. The overall length of the piece is 17 cm. Match hiders are recorded to have been carried by only one musketeer out of a group of 15 or 20 in order to enable the others to light their matches in case of emergency. As smoldering match would not only produce a visible glow and smoke but a traitorous smell as well, match hiders are believed to have been used especially on night marches. The item in discussion was sold Hermann Historica, Munich, on October 5, 2009, at a hammer price of 1,700 euro. In addition to images of this rarissimum, I enclose a few photos of similar match hiders on late 16th century Saxon bandoliers that I photographed in museums over decades. Best, Michael Attached Images Last edited by Matchlock; 7th October 2009 at 03:18 PM.