Art Institute of Chicago

Model Field Cannon (Culverin)

Possibly by Hans Reischperger

Date

1595

Medium

Bronze, iron, wood, and paint

Culture

Vienna

Department

Applied Arts of Europe

Institution

Art Institute of Chicago

The coat of arms and inscription cast into the breach (back end) of this model cannon indicates that it was ordered by or presented to Hans Reischperger, the master of artillery for the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II. Reischperger might have used it for courtly amusement or firing salutes. Conversely, it may have been a scaled-down model presented to Reischperger by a gun founder (cannon maker) with hopes of gaining commissions from the master artilleryman for full-size artillery. Cannons were costly and often treated like works of art. Its fine modeling and chasing of the ornament are exemplary of the craft. For example, the snake slithering along the top of the barrel is an artful play on the class of long-barreled cannon called a culverin after the French for grass snake.

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