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Title
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18th century Saxon Slurbow
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Collection Location
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Henry Crank and Co., Leeds, United Kingdom
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Date
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1758
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Location
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Dresden, Saxony, Germany
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Description
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The crossbow has a steel bow with yellow pom-poms (the auction website mentions it as green which appears to be a mistake) at the edges and near the prod binding and stirrup. The stock is made of fruitwood and a gilt cylindrical bar is attached to the prod. The sides of the stock are engraved with pictures of hounds, stags, and does. At the top of the stock and the cheek rest is inlaid with bone and gold foliage in the style of eighteenth century Late Baroque art. The top of the cheek rest gold decorated floral panels and part of the stock is hollowed out for the position of the thumb. The bolt channel is composed of bone and the date along with a stag is engraved near the string release. The nut mechanism, also made of bone, appears to be incomplete and there is a curved double trigger beneath the stock along with a setting chord.
According to the auction website, the butt stock is carved with the number 1 and the names of gunmakers, I.G.E and Ertell which cannot be seen in the image and while the crossbow appears to be made by them, the father and son duo are not recorded as crossbow makers.
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Source
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A private collection
