The muzzle-loading crapeaudeau of the first half of the fifteenth century is a small iron tube, mounted in a thick piece of wood, which stands on a small square block, with side handles for transportation--calibre, 32 mm.; it is a model executed from an old MS. A small culverin, the progenitor of the early petronel and later blunderbuss--length with mount, 1.80; barrel, 1.15; calibre, 25 mm. A breech-loading culverin of the first half of the fifteenth century--calibre, 0.065; length, 1.97. This weapon was found at Luxemburg during the demolition of part of the ramparts; it has a ring for hoisting. There is a serpentin forged on the “Mons Meg” principle, the carriage of which is constructed from an ancient MS. (Fig. 50). A ship falconet (Fig. 50), early sixteenth century, breech-loader; turning on a pivot--calibre, 0.035; length, 1.31. The collection of early ordnance at the Königl. Zeughaus at Berlin contains some interesting specimens. Among them is an example of the short early bombard, dating from the close of the fourteenth century; and a long serpent cannon, shooting a projectile of two and a half pounds weight, of the year 1419 (these two weapons have been constructed after contemporary drawings); two cannon, eighty-pounders; a seven-pounder bombard used by Charles the Bold, and taken by the Swiss at the battle of Nancy. There are also many others similar in character to specimens described in these pages. An interesting series of drawings of late fifteenth century artillery exists in the ordnance books of the Emperor Maximilian I., where you have examples of the bombard, serpentin, snakes, falconets, mortar, and orgue. The lighter guns are mounted on rude carriages, with heavy wooden wheels encircled with iron-hooping. [Illustration: Fig. 50.--Early Artillery.] The elbow bombard, used in Italy early in the fifteenth century, was a tube fixed at right angles on to a carriage--the angle was capable of manipulation by a prop, and the breech-block is inserted in the side. The orgue, the prototype of the modern mitrailleuse, was invented early in the fifteenth century--examples are mentioned with as many as thirty and forty barrels, and even more. There is an early specimen in the museum at Sigmaringen; and one dating from the beginning of the sixteenth century, with forty barrels, in the Imperial collection at Vienna. Another with five barrels, dating from about the end of the fifteenth century, and one a century later with sixty-four barrels; both in the collection of the Königl. Zeughaus at Berlin. A breech-loading gun of the fifteenth century may be seen in Fig. 50. The connecting link between artillery and hand-guns has been mentioned in an example at the Porte de Hal Museum, Brussels, and there are many other specimens there, called bâton à feu. Among them is a harquebus-mitrailleuse; this weapon, which is only twenty-five inches long, has nine barrels, moves on a pivot, and is fired by a wheel-lock.