A cylindrical scrap metal purchased at a UK flea marketplace for around $25 is definitely a medieval weapon value hundreds of dollars.
A hand cannon, believed to date from around 1400, was used to decorate the rock garden of the previous owner, who had no idea what it was, according to Hanson Auctioneers.
“After we got to the actual valuation, we were blown away,” said Charles Hanson, owner of Hansons Auctioneers. “It’s a heavy solid bronze three-ring cannon. This sort of weapon was seen in late medieval Europe around 1400-1450. It was the primary true small gun of its kind, essentially the most mechanically easy form of a metal-barreled firearm.”
Artifact sold for over $2,500 at auction on Thursday – greater than 100 times the worth on the flea market.
Hanson said he had never seen such an object after 20 years of working with antiques.
“That is a truly remarkable find,” said Hanson. “Originally, this cannon would have been mounted on wood with a bag of powder and a battering ram. It evolved to turn into a firearm with a matchlock and a trigger.”
While it’s unclear how the primary seller found the item, it was covered in earth and can have been dug up.
According to the auction house, hand cannons are considered one of the primary true firearms and have become widely utilized in China from the thirteenth century.
They appeared in Europe within the 14th and fifteenth centuries, with the primary known use around 1330 by mounted knights in modern Germany.
The primary record of a hand cannon in use in England dates back to the early fifteenth century, Hansons said.