Kurze Radschlossbüchse mit Rauchfang

When the trigger of a wheellock gun is pulled, the wheellock mechanism spins a steel wheel against a piece of pyrite to generate sparks that ignite gunpowder in a pan. This often produced a cloud of acrid smoke, which was especially annoying for hunters faced with (otherwise welcome) headwind. Emperor Ferdinand III loved the chase but seems to have suffered from particularly sensitive eyes. He commissioned a number of guns with tiny chimneys above the cock of the wheellock designed to collect the smoke generated when the gun was fired, which was thus released above the eyes of the shooter.

This wheellock gun, featuring just such a chimney, was produced by Hans Faschang, a gunsmith active in Vienna in the 1630–40s. He signed and dated it on the barrel with his monogram H.F. and the date 1638. His wheellock mechanism is not visible from the outside, but the wheel is covered with a pierced lid. The square chimney can be folded down.

The gun’s wooden stock is the work of an anonymous gunsmith given the name ‘Master of the Animal-Head Scroll’ (Meister der Tierkopfranke) in the mid-twentieth century because he decorated the barrels of his guns with basreliefs featuring lively garlands often ending in animal heads. Here, the foliage is home to both game and fantastic creatures, as well as a few music-making dogs and monkeys. The Master of the Animal-Head Scroll produced a number of extant works between 1624 and 1659. Some can be connected to Emperor Ferdinand III, which suggests he belonged to the circle of artists working for the imperial court. The side opposite the lock of this gun is embellished with a mother-of-pearl double-headed eagle clutching sword and sceptre, and a plain heart-shaped shield.