Omani barrel.

[Ibrahiim al Balooshi]

Originally Posted by Pukka Bundook

Thank you for the "Omani Silver" link, Ibrahiim!

The information is Very interesting, And very thorough!!

This Does add another aspect to this barrel question.
Reading through the "Matchlock" part, the early description does sound like these barrels, except it says the barrels were to be 'thick', with gold /silver at the breech, mid-section and muzzle.

The very small bore sounds spot on, And the dragon on the pan area Also seems the same on the one shown photographed at the museum, compared to those above, so whether these barrels came from Ceylon Or Persia I do not know!!??!.
It appears that Both types bore Persian /Arabic inscriptions, but is the barrel illustrated from the same region as the one ones above?? The decoration is very different....
According to Elgood, many if not most Singalese matchlocks had the pan on the left side, as they for some reason were often fitted with left-hand locks.
If this is a fact, it narrows down the possibility of these barrels being in the original 200 ordered from Ceylon.
Also, the typical Omani barrels I have seen do not have the gold/silver at the breech, middle, and muzzle, as the ones in the 200 purchased seem to have had.
Yes, a little silver band or so just forward of the breech, and maybe a band somewhat behind the muzzle, but is this what is being described?
I think I know why no real books have been written about this up to now!

More questions than answers...
Thank you for all your contributions, Ibrahiim!
Have you had opportunity to visit this museum?

Very best wishes,
Richard.

PS, I feel a bit bogged down and need to think over all the additional information. All so Interesting!

Salaams Pukka Bundook ~ Omani Silver dot com is a virtual museum but is being regularly updated. Regarding Sri Lankan influence ~The left fitted pan arrangement did happen there..and there is much about the Portuguese transfer of technology in gunpowder weapons .. although guns appear there before the advent of the Portuguese.

I believe a number of points of the compass witnessed weapons coming to Oman including from Persian, European, Red Sea and Sri Lankan trade. Delving into the facts is hugely difficult when you consider when Oman re emerged from the dark ages in about 1970.