Chinese Canon, Late 18th Century. 24948

CHINESE CANON, late 18th century. 24948 Made of cast iron. Round shaped barrel reinforced with strong rings, complete with its two trunnions. Length 1.26 m. Mouth diameter 68 mm. Mouth caliber 27 mm. About 20 kg. China. End of the 18th century. Good condition. NOTE: The Royal Armory collection has a fairly close example: Chinese iron cannon - 1.1-inch. Reference XIX.114. The part was intended for pivot mounting. It is cast in one piece, the chase having 5 hoops protruding at regular intervals. An inscription in Chinese characters engraved by the trunnions refers to the weight of the rifle and probably gives the names of the officials who supervised its manufacture; however, it is too worn for an accurate translation. A slightly flared iron tube projects rearward from the breech end of the weapon, into which the stock or stock can be inserted. The wooden stock or bar is preserved; It is slender and slightly curved, ending in a sculpted whorl-shaped finale. Barrel bore 28 mm Barrel length 711 mm Barrel length 991 mm Caliber 28 mm The projecting hoops on this barrel suggest the narrowed rings on the barrels of the first European iron cannons of built construction (see No. XIX.1) and may be vestiges cf. XIX.121, 192 and 232. Provenance: Taken in Benin in 1897 with Nos. XIX.112 and 113, probably by the expeditionary force commanded by lieutenant. Collar. Bruce Hamilton. https://collections.royalarmouries.org/object/rac-object-12229 ACKNOWLEDGMENT: I thank Mr Jean-Luc CERJAK who agreed to share his knowledge, to help me correctly identify this canon.