A brass sporting gun dated 1624

Abstract

An elaborately engraved brass gun bearing the date 1624 and signed 'IL' (James Low of Dundee) was acquired by the National Museum of Antiquities of Scotland in 1973. Comparison with the only other such gun (Tower of London Armouries) indicates that both were made by the same hand. Dundee was a major centre of firearm manufacture in late 16th and early 17th centuries, and a remarkable number of guns and pistols made by 'IL' have survived. AR