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French Gunflint ?

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  • French Gunflint ?

    I found this today when I found a new field and did a quick check. This is what I believe is a French Gunflint. It is 3/4"X3/4" and when you hold it up to the light it looks like honey. Opinions please.



  • #2
    Looks like a gun flint to me as well...cool!
    Southern Connecticut

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    • #3
      Yes, it is indeed a gunflint (and, since it’s prismatic, not a gunspall). It’s a typical form for the mid-late 1700’s onwards and it has been used… as evidenced by the semi-circular impact damage on the heel, created by the cap-screw of the gun-hammer.
      It’s what De Lotbiniere proposed as “Type 4”, characterised by having a single dorsal arris:

      [Picture from Torben Bjarke Ballin’s paper: “State of the Art” British Gunflint Research in the Society for Post-Medieval Archaeology Journal 46/1 (2012), after De Lotbiniere (1984) in “Gunflint Recognition”]
      Although De Lotbiniere originally classified this as an “English” type, more extensive research has established it to have been produced elsewhere too. These days it is more usual (and more accurate) to classify by morphology and manufacturing technique rather than presumed origin.
      In fact, types 3 and 4 are not different types as such, but represent different qualities within the same technology. Skertchley (1879) mentions that pieces with two dorsal arrises were referred to by English makers at Brandon as “bests”; pieces which were too thin or of inferior workmanship or raw material were “seconds”; and pieces with a single dorsal arris were called “commons” and considered of third rate. So, that one is a “common”.
      In terms of assigning it to a country of origin from the material, the best we can usually do is likelihood, since flint colours and appearances vary enormously throughout Europe. What you have is not likely to be British and might well be French, but the so-called “honey” flints of France are usually a warmer colour and not usually as translucent as that. I would say it’s quite possibly Dutch (from the Netherlands), where material with a “beeswax” colour and higher translucency was commonly used.
      Another pointer to France is often that – even with prismatic flints – they often trimmed them up around the heel to create the “bootheel” profile seen on earlier gunspalls (like the Type 1 example).  Not conclusive by any means… just a pointer, but yours has no trimming up.
      I keep six honest serving-men (they taught me all I knew); Their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and Who.

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      • #4
        Nice gunflint for sure
        South Dakota

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        • #5
          Super find!
          Like a drifter I was born to walk alone

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          • #6
            Does anyone know what kind of firearms would have accepted a small gunflint like this. I know pistol for sure but anything else.

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            • #7
              Gemcity wrote:

              Does anyone know what kind of firearms would have accepted a small gunflint like this. I know pistol for sure but anything else.
                Until  the military technology of mass-produced snap-blade gunflints was developed (1740 in France and 1775 in Britain), gunflints were made “by eye”. It was a while before the closely-guarded secret of snap-blade precision manufacture overtook hand production. Although the hand-makers had a nominal target size to achieve, the flints were sorted and graded afterwards. The purchaser chose from a number of size ranges according to the geometry of the flintlock mechanism for his gun and, although the size ranges had loose terms to suggest potential suitability, the flints weren’t custom made for specific guns. There were simply too many flintlock types, originating from multiple countries.
              At ¾ square, it’s almost of a size suitable for some rifles. Rifle flints might be as narrow as that, but usually at least an inch in length. It’s more consistent for use with what were known as “pocket pistols”. By the late 1700’s, pistols carried for personal defence were no longer than about 16 inches at maximum (often rather shorter) and were carried by both men (in long coat pockets) and women (in bags).
              One of the most popular of these pistols in Colonial America was the Ketland smooth bore manufactured in Birmingham, England by Thomas Ketland -and- Co. from the late 1700’s to early 1800’s:

              [Picture by Michael E. Cumpston – Creative Commons license]
              I keep six honest serving-men (they taught me all I knew); Their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and Who.

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              • #8
                Were these often discarded or did they have to replace these often?  That is really cool by the way.  Thanks for showing it.
                Montani Semper Liberi

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                • #9
                  lukecreekwalker wrote:

                  Were these often discarded or did they have to replace these often?  That is really cool by the way.  Thanks for showing it.
                    Modern flintlock rifle enthusiasts using reproduction weapons generally say that a single gunflint is good for almost 200 rounds, but the life of the flint depends on it being rejuvenated. Each shot progressively step-fractures, blunts or polishes the striking edge, reducing the likelihood of a decent spark. On average, you could only expect a decent spark for the first 50 shots or so and within that you might still get some misfires.
                  It all depends on the quality of the flint, and you could be unlucky on the first shot. Ultimately, you need to re-work the edge, although that can sometimes be avoided for a while by undoing the capscrew and rotating the flint or flipping it over to find an alternative edge.
                  U.S. Army records of 1846 indicate that riflemen were issued with one gunflint per 20 rounds of ammunition to avoid the need for soldiers to retouch the flints, or to carry additional equipment for doing so (Chapel 1962).
                  Unused flints are frequent finds, having fallen out of pockets or belt-pouches. The flint being shown here has been used somewhat, but is a long way from being exhausted, so was probably lost from the gun itself… maybe if the capscrew had become loosened.
                  I keep six honest serving-men (they taught me all I knew); Their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and Who.

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                  • #10
                    This is one I found here in Ky


                    I Have Never Met A Rock I Didn\'t Like

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                    • #11
                      This has been a great educational post for me. This flint has me wondering about the site . The field is covered in snow now so it will be a while before I can get into it again. Hopefully I might find some other items from that period. Thank you.

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                      • #12
                        I know the French buried lead plates at the confluence of the Kanawha and Ohio rivers claiming it as French property.  One of these plates even made it back across the pond I think.  I know they were in my area and I will keep my eyes peeled for one of these.  Never knew they existed.  I would have thrown it back and though it was a flake.  Awesome info Painshill.  You are great
                        Montani Semper Liberi

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                        • #13
                          For the example Jeffery just posted, if you put the bootheel profile together with the colour and appearance of the flint then that has a high likelihood of being French origin.
                          Just a note of caution here though. Attributing the flint itself to a country of origin in Europe does not necessarily tell us much (if anything) about the person that lost it. Gun-users would generally be buying their flints by the dozen from small trading posts and mercantile stores of various kinds. They, in turn would be supplied by the big importers... the likes of the Hudson's Bay Company and others. These were commercial times and things like gunflints were arriving as bulk consignments at American ports (and Canadian ones, for further distribution in North America) from all over the place. The French initially dominated the supply to the export market in the New World and Britain gradually took over, but smaller consignments came in from elsewhere too.
                          I keep six honest serving-men (they taught me all I knew); Their names are What and Why and When and How and Where and Who.

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                          • #14
                            1780 is when the military and and first settlements started moving into the Miami River Valley to push the Native Americans out. There were forts and fur traders working the area long before that.

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                            • #15
                              Gemcity wrote:

                              1780 is when the military and and first settlements started moving into the Miami River Valley to push the Native Americans out. There were forts and fur traders working the area long before that.
                                My gosh painshill you sure give a lot of info!
                              Gemcity,. without me going on and on that is a French amber gunflint , which is much superior to the English flints of the period. It's even brand new never been used. it wasn't a pistol flint by any means... any Germanic or even English lock could have held that and used it. French amber was the best and still is the best used for flintlocks.

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