Rights Holder: St. Albans District Council
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Unique ID: BH-A8CF56
Object type certainty: Certain
Workflow
status: Awaiting validation
A copper-alloy miniature toy musket of post-Medieval date.
The barrel has a hollow bore of 4mm and the outer surface of the barrel is faceted, with two pairs of grooves extending across its top. The downward-angling handle is also faceted; at its base it steps upwards, terminating in a 'fishtail-shaped' butt. The rectangular trigger guard (there is no trigger) is located on the underside, straddling the handle and butt. At the handle end of the barrel there is a circular pan for the priming powder and a rectangular moulding on the side.
Dimensions: total length: 88.3mm; length of bore: 55mm. Weight: 21.48g.
Similar toy muskets were found in London and are illustrated and discussed by Egan and Forsyth (2005: 88-97). According to the authors, the fishtail-shaped butt seen on all of these pieces is found on standard English muskets of the period 1600-1640, although the toys may have been made over a longer period (ibid. 89-90).
Class: Musket
Subsequent action after recording: Returned to finder
Broad period: POST MEDIEVAL
Period from: POST MEDIEVAL
Date from: Circa AD 1600
Date to: Circa AD 1700
Quantity: 1
Length: 88.3 mm
Weight: 21.48 g
Date(s) of discovery: Sunday 3rd June 2012
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Other reference: Ver 12/110 - 15
Primary material: Copper alloy
Manufacture method: Cast
Completeness: Complete
Grid reference source: GPS (from the finder)
Unmasked grid reference accurate to a 1 metre square.
Author | Publication Year | Title | Publication Place | Publisher | Pages | Reference | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Forsyth, H. with Egan, G. | 2005 | Toys, Trifles and Trinkets: Base Metal Miniatures from London 1200 to 1800 | London | Unicorn Press Ltd |