Wheellock pistol

Approximately 1 metre long, the weapon made of dark brown walnut wood with a rifled barrel is inlaid with ivory, while the butt is studded with metal and engraved. The wheellock was a firing mechanism that was widely used in the 16th century before being replaced by more modern systems. The mechanism functioned in a similar way to a modern-day lighter: a toothed metal wheel was wound up by tensioning a spring. When the gun was fired, this wheel turned and rubbed against a piece of pyrite or flint. Sparks were thereby produced that ignited the gunpowder. This pistol was probably used for hunting, which the decorations point towards, too. The flintlock bears the engraving of the Dresden pistol maker Johann Georg Erttel and shows a hunt in progress with horses and dogs, and a female hunter. Hares and foxes running away can be made out on the barrel.