Before the Ball: Clod Shot of 1375 - the Earliest Lead Gun Ammunition!

[Matchlock]

There are!

They just need to be found and identified! What do you think most people will do when they find such a crude piece of lead or iron? Exactly: throw it away faster than they could pick it up!

Best,
Michl

[Matchlock]

From the internet.

Cal. 19 mm, dug up in Austria.

Best,
Michael

[fernando]

AMAZING !!!!

[Matchlock]

I have seen some of these over the decades but do not own any.

m

[stekemest]

How long were those clod shots used? I own a piece that could date from the first half of the 15th century, would that fit?
I also have some of those lead balls filled with a piece of iron or stone. That was done because lead was very expensive.

[Matchlock]

Originally Posted by stekemest

How long were those clod shots used? I own a piece that could date from the first half of the 15th century, would that fit?
I also have some of those lead balls filled with a piece of iron or stone. That was done because lead was very expensive.

Oh yes, that's possible.

Although lead was expensive, I rather tend to believe that the method of including gravel was the easiest way to generate maximum loss on the enemy's side - it acted like shot.

Founding lead balls with a stone or iron core mostly seems to have been done for use with brass or bronze barrels, in order to protect these softer materials.

I'd also like to promote the following link here:

http://www.vikingsword.com/vb/showth...038#post120038


Best,
Michael

[Matchlock]

The idea was to load the gun barrel as follows:


- 1. insert the usual amount of gunpowder

- 2. insert the first piece of clod shot

- 3. repeat step 1

- 4. repeat step two etc.


When the maximum amount of powder clod shot, dependig on the length and strongness of the barrel, had been inserted, fine priming powder would have to be rinsed thru the central holes in the clod pieces, and all its way down to the lowest piece of shot, until the central hole of the top clod piece was filled with powder.

Then the barrel was ignited from the muzzle (!) either by a clamp holding a smoldering length of matchcord or by a red hot iron - see original illustrations of 1411! - , and all shots were fired in rapid succession ...


As D.R. Baxter has shown in his unparalleled work Superimposed Load Firearms 1360-1860, Hongkong, 1966 (warning: extremely rare to find and extremely extensive as well!), the very same system remained in use throughout the muzzleloading area ...



And now there is a piece of 14th century high tech for the earliest superimposed load system - in my collection!
It is the only known existing specimen of its kind worldwide ...


The watercolors are from Johannes Hartlieb, Buch der Kriegskunst, dated 1411, Austrian National Library ÖNB, cod.vind. 3069.


When wondering at the seemingly wrong scales of the shot, please remember that the authors of Medieval manuscripts tended to exaggerate in size the most important details that often were rather tiny in reality!



Best,
Michael, proud as a peacock!

[Matchlock]

Originally Posted by stekemest

How long were those clod shots used? I own a piece that could date from the first half of the 15th century, would that fit?
I also have some of those lead balls filled with a piece of iron or stone. That was done because lead was very expensive.

Hi,

As I have been both rather freely and busy sharing the pieces in my collection, and as these objects are so rare to find:
would you please care to post good images of your clod shot?

Thanks in advance,
Michael