Civil War Artillery Vent Pick (SOLD)

This is another nice item being offered, it is an Artillery Priming Wire. The iron piece is pointed at one end with a circular loop at the other. It measures 11” long, which would be typical of a field gun. It was inserted through the vent hole of the cannon in order to pierce the cartridge bag seated in the bore. This allowed the flame from the primer to reach the propellant charge.

In my book “Civil War Artillery – A Pictorial Introduction”, I have a similar Vent Pick (see pictures). This piece was part of a large Civil War collection I acquired and is in very nice condition.