Six-Barreled Pepperbox Disk Primer Pistol with Case and Accessories

ca. 1840–1850

Not on view

This type of pistol is commonly called a pepperbox, its defining feature being a rotatable cluster of full-length barrels. They were produced in large numbers in England in the 1830s-50s and were the first English revolvers to utilize percussion ignition system, though early examples of the English pepperbox date to the early 1800s and employed flintlocks. They commonly feature six or seven barrels machine bored from a single piece of steel, and a box-lock with a bar hammer at the top of the frame. This example is self-cocking, each pull of the trigger raising the releasing the hammer and rotating the barrel cluster. It utilizes a disk primer mechanism, instead of the more common percussion caps that fitted over a protruding nipple. It features a folding trigger, silver primer shield, and a blued frame and barrels, now faded, the frame and shield engraved with scrollwork.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Title: Six-Barreled Pepperbox Disk Primer Pistol with Case and Accessories
Gunsmith: Joseph Rock Cooper (British, Birmingham 1814–1882 Warwickshire)
Date: ca. 1840–1850
Geography: Birmingham
Culture: British, Birmingham
Medium: pistol: steel, silver, wood (walnut); case: wood (mahogany), brass, textile; powder flask: copper, gold, brass, steel; ram rod: brass, steel; bullet mold: steel; cylinder container: tin (?), lacquer
Dimensions: Pistol (a); L. 8 in. (20.3 cm); L. of barrel 2 7/8 in. (7.3 cm); Cal. .35 in. (8.9 mm); Wt. 1 lb. 7 oz. (652 g); powder flask (b); H. 3 1/8 in. (7.9 cm); Wt. 3.4 oz. (96.4 g); ramrod (c); L. 4 1/4 in. (10.8 cm); Wt. 2.2 oz. (62.4 g); bullet mould (d); L. 4 7/16 in. (11.3 cm); Wt. 1.4 oz. (39.7 g); cylinder with contents (e); H. 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm); Diam. 1 9/16 in. (4 cm); Wt. 2.8 oz. (79.4 g); case (f); H. 1 3/4 in. (4.5 cm); W. 10 1/8 in. (25.7 cm); D. 7 5/16 in. (18.6 cm); Wt. 1 lb. 2.4 oz. (521.6 g)
Classification: Firearms-Pistols
Credit Line: Gift of Charles M. Schott Jr., 1917
Object Number: 19.53.82a–f
Curatorial Department: Arms and Armor

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