Estimated reading time: 0 minutes
A new study published in November revealed the oldest gun discovered in America to date, estimated by archaeologists to be 480 years old.
In 2020, archaeologists researched a stone-and-adobe site near the Santa Cruz River in Arizona. The building proved to be from the Spanish Vásquez de Coronado expedition.
The study extract from the “International Journal of Historical Archaeology” describes the weapon as a “bronze cannon or wall gun.”
Archaeologists Think It’s Ancient
According to Fox 10, the weapon they found there was the first one archaeologists recovered from the expedition.
The researchers identified the approximate age of the ancient gun using a radiocarbon dating technique. At about 480 years old, the gun is likely the oldest in the United States.
“Perhaps the oldest cannon currently known on the continent,” Dr. Deni J. Seymour said in the study.
A Massive Gun
The large weapon weighs 40 lbs and would probably take at least two people to operate, according to the study. It would have been set on a sturdy wooden “tripod” and could likely send large lead balls flying over 700 feet.
The team of archaeologists did not find any ammunition for the massive gun. Instead, they found a series of “broken swords and daggers, fishhooks, pottery, and other items.”
Researchers speculate that the lack of ammunition could be because the weapon was never fired. The barrel of the ancient gun did not have any powder residue on it.
A Search For Gold Ended Awry
According to the study, the building seemed to be part of a Spanish settlement that Coronado established while searching for gold. It appears that someone attacked the town and its residents abandoned all their supplies.
READ MORE: Ohio Homeowner Fatally Shoots Apartment Intruder
According to Popular Mechanics, the Coronado expedition was a “quest to find the mythical Seven Cities of Gold somewhere in the American southwest.”
The Spanish explorers did not find treasure chests of gold anywhere in Arizona, but their stop along the river left us a treasure.
*** Buy and Sell on GunsAmerica! All Local Sales are FREE! ***
a kumquat cannon?????
Maybe Uberti will offer a replica. 😜