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LOT 76
Rare and Highly Desirable Hotchkiss 37mm “1-Pounder” 5-Barrel Revolving Cannon with Iron Carriage - Serial no. 17, 37mm , 50 inch round bbl., blue/black/bright finish. This is an attractive and highly desirable example of a rarely seen Hotchkiss 37mm “1-Pounder” 5-barrel revolving cannon mounted on an iron carriage. The Hotchkiss revolving cannon is similar in operation from an outside perspective to the more famous Gatling gun, though scaled up and with an entirely different internal operating mechanism; the 37mm bore dwarfs the .45 and
.30 caliber Gatlings. Using a five-barrel cluster, the Hotchkiss cannon is fed with 9-round gravity driven magazines, which would be replaced by a gunner’s assistant while the gunner operates the elevation and traverse knobs along with the main crank handle for
firing, with capability of around 68 rounds per minute with a skilled operator and accuracy up to around 2,000 yards (over a mile). These were invented in 1872 by Benjamin B. Hotchkiss. Versions were designed for field, fortress and naval use. They were used
by several countries throughout the world, including the U.S., France, and Russia. A 37 mm Hotchkiss field gun is known to have been used by the U.S. Army during the Indian Wars including during the Ute Uprising in Colorado in 1879. Others were used
during the Spanish-American War by both sides. Hotchkiss naval revolving cannons continued to be used even into World War I primarily as defensive weapons used by larger vessels against torpedo boats. Marked with a circular “HOTCHKISS * PATENT/*
PARIS 1875 *” around “No 17” on the rear. “17” marked on the end of the crank. Iron cone front sight with a detachable elevation and windage adjustable notch rear
sight. The crank handle is iron with a swiveling brass grip, and mounts with a quick release latch.
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