Accession Number

1989.001.0001b

Creation Date

circa 1620

Description

Half of shot mold. See also 1989.001.0001a.

Exhibition Label

Case Caption (2023):

FIREARMS

Firearms replaced crossbows by the late 1500s. They were extremely heavy and not very accurate, but they were powerful. To improve accuracy, each man carried a pole with a yoke at its top to steady the muzzle while he used both hands to aim and fire.

Arquebuses and muskets both fired lead balls, but each had their own advantages. Muskets had a longer range, but arquebuses could be reloaded faster. Neither had a built-in firing mechanism, so the soldiers carried lit slow-burning cords with which to ignite the gunpowder behind the ball.
Object Caption (2023):

Shot Molds with Balls
Iron (c.1620)
Gifts of Jamestown Inc., Mel Fisher
1989.001.0001a-b, 1986.008.1758

Soldiers often had to make their own shot, using this scissor-type mold to cast them, one at a time.