id:			96671
accession number:	1916.40
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/1916.40
updated:		2023-08-23 18:13:41.443000

Wheel-Lock from a Hunting Rifle, c. 1720–40. Germany, Munich, 18th century. Steel, engraved; overall: 29.2 x 11.7 cm (11 1/2 x 4 5/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.40

title:				Wheel-Lock from a Hunting Rifle
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			c. 1720–40
creation date earliest:		1715
creation date latest:		1745
current location:		210B Firearms
creditline:			Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance
copyright:			

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culture:	Germany, Munich, 18th century
technique:	steel, engraved
department:	Medieval Art
collection:	MED - Arms & Armor
type:		Arms and Armor
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 29.2 x 11.7 cm (11 1/2 x 4 5/8 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:

	description:	chiselled with grotesques, masks and foliage
	watermarks:	

inscriptions:

	inscription:	on lock: IOAN GEORG DAX IN MUNCHEN; engraver's signature: I.C. Stenglin Sr.
	translation:	
	remark:		

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		European Arms and Armor from the Cleveland Museum of Art (Long-term Loan)
	opening date:   1993-07-01T04:00:00
	<i>European Arms and Armor from the Cleveland Museum of Art (Long-term Loan)</i>. Birmingham Museum of Art (organizer) (July 1, 1993-July 1, 1995).

	title:		Armor Court Reinstallation
	opening date:   1998-09-10T00:00:00
	<i>Armor Court Reinstallation</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

	Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art
	date: -1916
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
	date: 1916-
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


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fun fact:
The engraver's signature, I.C. Stenglin Sr., can be seen on the edge running vertically.

digital description:


wall description:
At the beginning of the 1500s a new type of ignition system was invented: the wheel-lock, the first self-igniting mechanism for guns. This type of ignition involved a piece of iron pyrites held in the jaws of a cock. When the trigger was pulled the pyrites pressed against the serrated edge of a prewound revolving wheel, creating a shower of sparks that ignited priming powder in a pan on top of the lock. This action sent a flash of flame through the vent hole to explode the main charge in the breech of the barrel. Originally part of a deluxe hunting rifle, the lock plate's entire surface is engraved in a chaotic scene. Combating cavaliers, Turks, acanthus leaves, and trophies cover every bit of space.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

	<em>Catalogue of Arms and Armour</em>. Vol. 4, <em>17th to 19th century and a few pieces of iron work</em>. [Boston, Massachusetts]: [Frank Gair Macomber], [1900-1915].
	page number: 	Mentioned and Reproduced: No. (243) 267
	url:		https://archive.org/details/CatArmsArmour4/page/n439

	Gilchrist, Helen Ives. <em>A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms &amp; Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. </em>Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924.
	page number: 	Mention: p. 168, F81
	url:		https://archive.org/details/SeveranceCollection1924/page/n242

	Fliegel, Stephen N. <em>Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. </em>[Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998.
	page number: 	p. 174, cat. no. 231
	url:		

	Fliegel, Stephen N. <em>Arms &amp; Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art.</em> [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007.
	page number: 	p. 194, cat. no. 235
	url:		

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.40/1916.40_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.40/1916.40_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/1916.40/1916.40_full.tif