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Title
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Unique pellet crossbow
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Collection Location
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Private Collection
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Date
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17th century (likely)
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Location
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Tuscany (modern-day Italy)
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Description
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At the tip of the crossbow, the stock protrudes and has been carved into the shape of a dragon’s head. Then there is a forked sight, a sight made of two vertical metal sticks joined at the bottom by a horizontal metal stick which has been set into a notch in the stock. The sight appears to be made of iron.
The iron prod still has its original bowstring. As is typical for pellet crossbow bowstrings, it has wooden supports which help keep the shape or position of the complicated bowstring such that it is easier to load a pellet. The prod joins to the stock with bow irons. There is some damage to the stock right above the bow irons.
The stock is made of walnut wood. It has strips of bone inlay that have been decorated (possibly burn-marked) with designs of dark concentric circles and dots. There are small decorative carved indentations in lengthwise lines down the stock.
The stock has a slight concave curve on its topside in the area between the prod and the foldable sight.
There is a metal attachment which appears to be a foldable sight which can fold down into a little cavity in the stock. It appears to have some decorative elements in the metalwork. However, it might be the remains of a hook for the bowstring. If so, it is heavily damaged.
Just past this, there appears to be a non-foldable sight which stands up from the stock. Then, the topside of the stock shapes into a lengthwise ridge which ends in some slight carved scrollwork, after which the stock returns to a normal straight shape. This area of the stock also has bone inlays and carved indentations as previously described. The butt of the stock is in the shape of a knob or pommel.
This crossbow is rather unique. There are a set of typical traits which characterize Italian pellet crossbows as a category. This crossbow has versions of these traits which are so slight as to be remarkable. The slight concave depression in the otherwise straight stock stands in contrast to the deep half-circle curve of the typical Italian pellet crossbow. Often, this curve is so pronounced that it had to be made of a different piece of wood that had to be joined to the rest of the stock.
The carved dragon’s head at the tip of this crossbow completely diverges from the pyramidal spike typically seen on Italian pellet crossbows.
The ridge and scrollwork carved into the stock are in the place on the stock where there is typically an elaborate carving. If not elaborate, the typical carving at least protrudes prominently from the stock. The example on this crossbow is neither elaborate nor prominent.
One explanation of how minimal these traits are is that the crossbow was made by someone unfamiliar with the category of Italian pellet crossbow.
Another explanation, perhaps more likely, is that this crossbow was made by an inexperienced crossbow maker. This idea is supported by other signs of crudeness in the workmanship, for example, the circle designs on the bone inlay are often off-center and asymmetrical, the bone inlays themselves are small and sometimes imperfectly shaped, and the carved indentations also have variations. The dragon’s head at the tip of the crossbow is also quite crudely carved.
Another explanation is that the crossbow was made early in the formation of the style category of Italian pellet crossbow, such that the signature traits had not much emerged yet, nor developed to the intensity seen in other examples of the category.
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Source
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CZERNY'S INTERNATIONAL AUCTION HOUSE
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Crossbow Top Measurements
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Length: 79.5 cm
