Challenging the times of technical innovation: the traditional production of musket balls after the introduction of shot towers

CIARLO, NICOLÁS C.; CASTELLI, ANA

Salisbury

Congreso; HMS Annual Conference: Metallurgy in Warfare - A Spur to Innovation and Development; 2014

Historical Metallurgy Society

Lead shot production experienced a radical change during the last quarter of the 18th century with the introduction of shot towers, for which William Watts from Bristol received a patent in 1782. They were developed to replace the preceding method, which consisted in pouring molten lead into molds, a traditional but laborious process that usually left undesirable seams and other imperfections on the shots' surface. Nonetheless, despite the success and expanding use of Watts' invention in England and the rest of Europe, the previous practice withstood in some manufacturing centers for decades. Studying archaeological materials allows enriching the available knowledge related to mass-produced artifacts, particularly where traditional means persisted within a context of industrial growth and innovation. In this work, the analyses were conducted on a sample of musket balls recovered from the cargo of a British ship that sunk in the Ebro delta (Catalonia, Spain) in 1813. The macroscopic and microstructural characteristics of these artifacts, combined with data from other archaeological sites, provided additional information about the production methods used in the period. Based on historical and archaeological research, the underlying drivers of innovation process were explored. Confluent factors such as the economic and technical advantages that one way had over the other, certain conservatism associated with traditional craft, and the increasing military demand of ammunition in times of war, were in this respect taken into consideration. The analysis performed provided a more accurate picture of the technological changes associated with weaponry during late 18th to early 19th centuries.