Title: pottery-wepns-msg
Subject: Period use of pottery in weapons.
Author: Edited by Mark S. Harris
Last saved by: Mark S. Harris
Keywords: medieval, pottery, weapon, grenade, pitch, ceramic, pot

pottery-wepns-msg - 12/21/99

Period use of pottery in weapons.

NOTE: See also the files: pottery-msg, warfare-msg, weapons-msg, ships-msg, ships-bib, firearms-msg, blackpowder-msg, slings-msg.

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    Mark S. Harris                  AKA:  THLord Stefan li Rous
                                          Stefan at florilegium.org
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Date: Wed, 24 Nov 1999 18:24:51 -0800 (PST)
   From: Jeanne Wood <clayjinn at yahoo.com>
To: Potters at onelist.com
Subject: pottery weapons

Did anyone else catch the PBS show last night on the
Archaeological dig of ship sunk off the Gulf Coast of
Texas? It was one of the French explorer LaSalle's
ship's sunk in the 1600's. One of the artifacts they
found was a weapon consisting of a ceramic pot filled
with pitch, and inside that was a cast metal cup(which
may have contained gunpowder, I'm not certain). The
pot had a wooden lid which contained a fuse.
The combatants would light the fuse toss it over on an
enemy ship, it would explode blowing hot pitch all
over and the explosion would cause a second explosion
which would blow the cast metal shrapnel all over the
deck. They said it was unlikely to kill, but it would
maim and the wounds would cause infection.
They showed an attractive little pot. I felt kind of
sad I'd never before heard of our craft used as a
weapon of battle.

Morgaina

Date: Thu, 25 Nov 1999 07:28:00 -0500
   From: Timothy A Whitcomb <freyja1 at juno.com>
To: Potters at onelist.com
Subject: Re: pottery weapons

SNIPPED
> deck. They said it was unlikely to kill, but it would
> maim and the wounds would cause infection.
> They showed an attractive little pot. I felt kind of
> sad I'd never before heard of our craft used as a
> weapon of battle.
> Morgaina

Yeah, it is...
But evidently not that uncommon. Remember that ms. illumination of the
two demon-like characters flailing away at each other with broken
tankards? And in McCarthy and Brooks there are a number of citations for
pottery being used as a murder weapon in England, even among the clergy!

Hroar

Date: Fri, 26 Nov 1999 09:35:12 +1100
   From: "Lenehan" <lenehan at southcom.com.au>
To: Potters at onelist.com
Subject: Re: pottery weapons

Madelaine's husband here:

From: Jeanne Wood <clayjinn at yahoo.com>
>One of the artifacts they
>found was a weapon consisting of a ceramic pot filled
>with pitch, and inside that was a cast metal cup(which
>may have contained gunpowder, I'm not certain). The
>pot had a wooden lid which contained a fuse.

Ceramics have featured in weaponry for a very long time.  Both traditional
naptha bombs (used by the Romans) and Greek Fire (used by the Byzantines)
were sometimes held in ceramic containers to be hurled by engines.  The
Greek Fire thus became an early napalm bomb (instead of its normal use in
flamethrowers).  Specifically exploding pots date from the earliest days of
gunpowder.   In 1232 (well within our period) the town of Kai-feng-fu (in
China) defended itself against the Mongols using war rockets.   From later
versions that are known it is likely that these had a simple ceramic
exploding head, detonated by a fuse.  Whilst not very effective in terms of
casualties, the horses really didn't like them.  Some grenades today still
use ceramic shrapnel as x-rays cannot pick it up as well (lovely people
aren't we).

Of course, broken pots (not actually of interest to you people) were also
used in some of the first "grape" style weapons.  Much easier and cheaper
than iron shot - and it leaves nasty open wounds.

yis
Hrolf Herjolfssen

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