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Hunting Knife Combined with Wheellock Pistol

Etcher Ambrosius Gemlich German
blade ca. 1528–29, etched with a calendar for the years 1529–34; barrel dated 1540 or 1546
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 375
In the sixteenth century, wheellock pistols sometimes were combined with swords, knives, axes, maces, spears, and even crossbows, which could be used in the event the pistol misfired. Usually clumsy and impractical, combined weapons were nevertheless highly prized curiosities. On this example, the heavy, cleaverlike blade is etched with a calendar and the decorator's name.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Hunting Knife Combined with Wheellock Pistol
  • Etcher: Ambrosius Gemlich (German, Munich and Landshut, active ca. 1520–50)
  • Date: blade ca. 1528–29, etched with a calendar for the years 1529–34; barrel dated 1540 or 1546
  • Geography: Munich
  • Culture: German, Munich
  • Medium: Steel, gold, staghorn, bronze
  • Dimensions: L. 18 1/4 in. (46.4 cm); L. of barrel 12 3/8 in. (31.4 cm); L. of blade 13 1/4 in. (33.7 cm); Cal. .28 in. (7.1 mm)
  • Classification: Combination Weapons
  • Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1904
  • Object Number: 04.3.158
  • Curatorial Department: Arms and Armor

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