Wheellock Pistol

ca. 1600–1610

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 375

French wheellock pistols of the early seventeenth century are distinguished by their extreme length, small-caliber barrels, and delicate decoration of engraved mother-of-pearl, staghorn, and brass. Innovations in the wheellock mechanism, such as the placement of the mainspring within a recess in the grip rather than on the interior of the lockplate (as was usual on German wheellocks), allowed the stocks of the French pistols to be lighter, more slender, and more gracefully proportioned.

Artwork Details

Overview

Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings

Provenance

References

Title: Wheellock Pistol
Date: ca. 1600–1610
Culture: French
Medium: Steel, wood (maple), mother-of-pearl, brass, gold
Dimensions: L. 32 1/8 in. (81.6 cm); L. of barrel 24 1/2 in. (62.2 cm); Cal. .35 in. (8.9 mm); L. of screw plug 6 in. (15.2 cm); Diam. at muzzle 7/16 in. (1.1 cm); Diam. at breech 13/16 in. (2.1 cm); L. of lock 5 5/8 in. (14.3 cm); Wt. 3 lb. 3 oz. (1446 g)
Classification: Firearms-Pistols-Wheellock
Credit Line: Gift of William H. Riggs, 1913
Object Number: 14.25.1422
Curatorial Department: Arms and Armor

More Artwork

In the same gallery

A slider containing 5 items.
Press the down key to skip to the last item.

Double-Barreled Wheellock Pistol Made for Emperor Charles V (reigned 1519–56), Peter Peck German, Steel, gold, wood (cherry), staghorn, German, Munich — Double-Barreled Wheellock Pistol Made for Emperor Charles V (reigned 1519–56)
Peter Peck
Ambrosius Gemlich
ca. 1540–45

Cased Set of a Flintlock Rifle, a Pair of Pistols, and Accessories, Nicolas Noël Boutet French, Steel, wood (walnut, mahogany), silver, gold, horn, velvet, French, Versailles — Cased Set of a Flintlock Rifle, a Pair of Pistols, and Accessories
Nicolas Noël Boutet
ca. 1800

Flintlock Gun of Louis XIII (1601–1643), King of France, Pierre Le Bourgeois French, Steel, brass, silver, gold, wood (walnut), mother-of-pearl, French, Lisieux — Flintlock Gun of Louis XIII (1601–1643), King of France
Pierre Le Bourgeois
Marin Le Bourgeois
ca. 1620

Double-Barrel Breech-Loading Pinfire Shotgun, J. C. A. Brun French, Steel, wood (walnut), gold, French, Paris — Double-Barrel Breech-Loading Pinfire Shotgun
Multiple artists/makers
dated 1866

Double-Barreled Percussion Shotgun, Louis Perrin French, Steel, wood (walnut), silver, French, Paris — Double-Barreled Percussion Shotgun
Louis Perrin
Léopold Bernard
dated 1854

Research Resources

The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.

To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.

Feedback

We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.