A Vietnamese ‘Montagnard’ primitive Snaphaunce

Recently sold on IMA ...

This is definitely a very interesting, almost BIZZARE item! Originating from the ‘Hill People’ or Montagnards of the central highlands of Vietnam right around the DMZ, these indigenous people were found during the war in the 1960's and 1970's to be living virtually back to the Stone Age. Their principal weapon was a rudimentary crossbow and they carried on their existence largely ignoring the terrible conflict going on around them. These most unusual "firearms" of truly ancient design were as far as they had ever got into "modern technology" at that time. Based on the 17th century French ignition system, the Montagnard system is even MORE primitive. This is most likely a bring back from the Vietnam War and could be 200-years old or even 20th Century.

It has a 40" barrel in approximately 45 caliber muzzleloading smoothbore. It has a very light wood stock culminating in almost a walking stick handle butt end. The barrel is attached to the very light fore stock with bands that look to be copper at the rear, with four silver bands along the barrel. The lock is really primitive but does bear some line engraving. There does not appear to be a pan per se but we understand some sort of flammable fuse was plugged into the touch hole and the frizzen was lowered on top of it. Once the trigger was pulled the frizzen was knocked out of the way and the fuse ignited.

Nuts!!! That’s wild!

I’ll hold your beer while you shoot it!, lemme get behind the tree first!

RM

… I wuz gonna have you hold it …

And hold my beer? How bout we figure out a string and both keep our beer’s and find a big ole tree and give a tug and see what happens?

RM

Flint62Smoothie said:

… I wuz gonna have you hold it …

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OK but you gotta buy the beer.

So, The general consensus here is that we are all chicken!!!

I can live with that!



RM

This sounds like fun!

Ha!

RM

was fascinating to watch the "Yards" make their own powder too!

So how reliable was it Boss?

RM

What was the potassium? Bat guano?

went bang enough to take monkey or whatever. never found out their source of kno3. slight language barrier. and limited time. plus the girls were a distraction.

The Seediq bale peoples of Taiwan were headhunters and warriors that opposed the Japanese. They had very similar matchlocks .

Rod Man said:

So, The general consensus here is that we are all chicken!!!

I can live with that!



RM

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cluck-cluck-cluck!!

it will kill at both ends!!

The "Rhade" we're very interesting people and great friends once made. They had white hot hatred for the Vietnamese, are fierce warriors, and pretty fair hunters with large or small cros, sbows and bamboo arrows, just make sure you know which arrow has the bad ju-ju on it. The two families I was friends with, we're just 10 years removed from headhunting, and possible cannibalism. Oh, and the women are beautiful till old,

On holiday in northern Thailand a few years ago I spotted a "firearm" (!!!!!) in the corner of a hut. The barrel looked like it was electrical trunking, set up in a stock which seemed to have been hacked out with a machete. It was percussion, the crude hammer on the side of the stock, powered by a coil spring I asked to look at it and could see that there was no half-cock: the hammer was propped up at full cock by a "trigger" alongside the stock, as in early matchlocks. Sadly I didn't have an opportunity to get a picture but I DID ask the tour guide about it and she was told that the indigenous tribe was not allowed any modern firearms (just like people in the Amazon jungle). I would LOVE to find out what they used for powder and caps.

I ain't afraid I'd light that bad boy up....with about 10 grains of powder.....

jimhallam said:

...I would LOVE to find out what they used for powder and caps.

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Cap gun caps and homemade powder

flint ignition and homebrew BP

I was able to hold one of these while at the Baltimore Antique Arms Show years ago. The lock was still in working order and even had what appeared to be an original flint (more like a flint pawl) secured in the fixed jaw with a well weather worn leather lace. The lock looked identical to the one posted here. There is a small nub on the front of the trigger. The rear of the hammer at cock would sit under the nub, with the rear sear-type spring keeping pressure against the trigger bar till ready to fire. To fire, the trigger was pulled back as normal. The nub, having a slight curve, allowed the trigger to slide around the hammer. That's how the guy showed me it worked. Very strange. He also had a small leather bag with monkey hair still on it, that had lead balls, and tiny smooth rocks. Also, some short pieces of fuse, about 2" long that were coated with black powder. The fuses looked like twisted grass with some type of substance to allow the black powder to stick to the grass. The guy mentioned that monkey was considered a delicacy to some of these hill people.
Since then, occasionally, one of these turns up at auction. They bring a fairly good price to certain collectors. The overall design, and the locks all look the same. I just missed getting a lock (only) for one of these about 3-4 years ago. Someone else saw it first. Certainly primitive and unusual.

Rick