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Shell, Artillery

Object number2017.151.47

Manufacturer Allegheny Arsenal

OriginPittsburgh, PA

MediumIron

Credit LineGift of the U.S. Army

DescriptionFragment of twelve-pound (12 lb.) cannon shell. Partial hollow iron sphere. Two semi-circular threaded openings for fuze. Approximately one-third of whole cannonball.DimensionsLength x Width x Depth: 4 × 4.125 × 2 in. (10.2 × 10.5 × 5.1 cm)
Historical NotesPart of a collection of fragments of spherical case shot and cannon shells. These were part of a large group of artillery shells unearthed in 2017 during construction in Lawrenceville at the site of the Allegheny Arsenal. The shells were transferred to the U.S. Army to be destroyed. These fragments were given to the History Center after the U.S. Army exploded the shells.Label TextUsed heavily during the Civil War, artillery spherical case shot consisted of a hollow iron ball filled with lead balls suspended in a sulfur matrix and a bursting charge. A pewter Borman time fuse, screwed in at the top, would ignite the bursting charge and shower shrapnel on enemy soldiers and animals.

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