Collection record · Objects & craft
Combined Priming Flask and Wheel-Lock Spanner
The collection record classifies this work as arms and armor. It is dated c. 1600–1650. Recorded culture or place: Germany or Austria, first half of 17th Century.
Explore the object recordOBJECT RECORD
A closer look at the details.
- Museum title
- Combined Priming Flask and Wheel-Lock Spanner
- Date
- c. 1600–1650
- Culture / origin
- Germany or Austria, first half of 17th Century
- Materials and technique
- horn with brass and steel mounts
- Dimensions
- Overall: 18.1 x 5.7 cm (7 1/8 x 2 1/4 in.)
- Artist / maker
- Not specified by the museum
- Museum
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Accession number
- 1916.43
FROM THE MUSEUM
In the museum’s words
The following description is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s original English record.
Early firearms required many tools and accessories for their proper use and maintenance. This clever design fulfilled a dual purpose as a spanner and priming flask. Small containers like this one would hold fine-grain gunpowder used to set off (or prime) the main charge in the barrel. A spanner would be used to operate a wheel-lock mechanism that enabled a gun to fire. On the gun, the jaws of the lock clamped a piece of flint or pyrites designed to rub against the rough edge of the wheel projecting into the pan. The wheel was revolved by a tightly coiled spring wound by the spanner and released when the gun's trigger was pulled causing sparks to ignite the gunpowder in the breech.
FOLLOW THE SOURCE
Text and image sources
The Cleveland Museum of Art · Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance · CC0
The summary is based on public collection data. Refer to the museum’s latest record for the title, date and attribution.
Open the complete museum record View the open-access policyTHE VISITOR BOOK
What caught your eye?
Opening the visitor book…
