Original English Detached Matchlock Ignition System with Pan Cover – 7 1/4″ Long Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. Well this is certainly a “blast from the past”! Here we have a very nice English Matchlock ignition system, fitted with a very nice cover that both keeps the powder in and prevents an accidental discharge. The idea is simple: using a lit match, or wick, to ignite the powder in the pan and discharge the weapon. The lock serves to move a lever called the “serpentine” to the pan, which held the match. Some designs put this in front of the pan, while others had it behind, and all generally were spring loaded, without any cocking mechanism. It was discharged by pulling the trigger to move the lever. Unlike the later Wheellock and Snaphaunce designs, no flint was used, and the “match” or wick had to be kept lit if it was to be used.

The matchlock certainly had its drawbacks, mostly related to keeping the wick lit and ready to fire, as well as issues with the danger a lite wick caused during reloading. It was also not waterproof at all, and could be blown out by a strong wind. However at the time the low cost kept the Matchlock in service until a better system was designed, which ended up being the flintlock systems, a much better design than the Snaphaunce and Matchlock.

This example is the typical English style, with the serpentine at the front of the lock, and the actuating lever at the rear. The serpentine has a securing nut at the front, which allows it to securely hold onto the match. The lock plate measures about 7 1/4 inches long, and would have been held in place by two lock screws. While the firing system is totally different, the typical shape of the lock plate is very similar to the early flintlocks, even down to the location of the the lock plate screws. There is even a cover over the pan, to prevent the powder from spilling or being accidently set off.

Condition is very good, especially considering the age. It has a lovely aged patina on the metal, showing no major pitting or oxidation. Most likely this was a later production example, and may very well have been removed so that a flintlock could be fitted in its place. There was no easy way to convert the Matchlock to a Flintlock, so many locks were simply disposed of. This one somehow managed to survive.

Quite rare and full of research potential!

More on the Matchlock Ignition System:
A matchlock is a historical type of firearm wherein the gunpowder is ignited by a burning piece of rope that is touched to the gunpowder by a mechanism that the musketeer activates by pulling a lever or trigger with his finger. Before the invention of the matchlock mechanism, the musketeer or an assistant had to apply the match directly to gunpowder by hand, much like a cannon. The matchlock mechanism allowed the musketeer to apply the match himself without losing his concentration.

The classic matchlock gun held a burning slow match in a clamp at the end of a small curved lever known as the serpentine. Upon the pull of a lever (or in later models a trigger) protruding from the bottom of the gun and connected to the serpentine, the clamp dropped down, lowering the smoldering match into the flash pan and igniting the priming powder. The flash from the primer traveled through the touch hole igniting the main charge of propellant in the gun barrel. On release of the lever or trigger, the spring-loaded serpentine would move in reverse to clear the pan. For obvious safety reasons, the match would be removed before reloading of the gun. Both ends of the match were usually kept alight in case one end should be accidentally extinguished.

Earlier types had only an “S”-shaped serpentine pinned to the stock either behind or in front of the flash pan (the so-called “serpentine lock”), one end of which was manipulated to bring the match into the pan.

Most matchlock mechanisms mounted the serpentine forward of the flash pan. The serpentine dipped backward, toward the firer, to ignite the priming. This is the reverse of the familiar forward-dipping hammer of the flintlock and later firearms.

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