PAIR OF FLINTLOCK PISTOLS - Tuscany, Emilia. Late 17th century, during the reign of the Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici; around 1680. 34608.

PAIR OF WHEELLOCK PISTOLS - Tuscany Emilie. Late 17th century, reign of the Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici; around 1680. 34608

Walnut wood stocks decorated with carved fillets and steel fittings: pommels, side plates, and ramrod pipes with relief engravings featuring foliate motifs. Relief and engraved lock plates. Flat barrels with flutes and astragals, marked with the name of the gunsmith PIETRO MORETO in small capital letters. These pistols were made in Loiano in Tuscany Emilie around 1680.
Total length: 45 cm; barrel length: 29 cm; caliber: 14 mm.

Tuscany Emilie.
Late 17th century, reign of the Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici; around 1680.
Condition: Good oxidation and wear marks, one authentic ramrod with its worm, the other remade identically. Weak mechanism notches and a well-repaired break in the stock near the pommel.

PROVENANCE:
Former PM collection.

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND:
Pietro Moreto (or Pietro Moreto the Elder / Pietro Moretto) was a famous master gunsmith (cannoniere or cannaro) active in the 17th century in the Tuscan-Emilian region, mainly associated with the armory center of Loiano, located in the Bolognese Apennines, on the road connecting Bologna to Florence. In the 17th century, the Loiano area, at the heart of Emilia-Romagna and on the borders of Tuscany, housed a renowned armory school for its transitional mechanisms (such as the miquelet lock or alla fiorentina / alla romana) and the production of light cannons. The gunsmiths of this region often collaborated with other armorers in the valley (such as Alessandro Ghini in Loiano). Cannons produced by Pietro Moreto's forge are recognizable by unique punch and typography characteristics: Signature in small capital letters: The signature is applied using individual punch letters in Roman capitals/small capitals: PIETRO MORETO (sometimes arranged on two lines).