Nineteenth Century Gunflints from the Nepalese Armory

Abstract

A sample from a stockpile of gunflints discarded by the Nepalese military in the early to middle 1800s shows that although Nepal obtained most of its munitions from Britain, the situation was complex. The Nepalese rapidly learned to manufacture their own guns, imitating or varying British patterns. However, gunflints were a necessary component of flintlock firearms that were obtained by most nations from a few European centers. Although most of the flints in the Nepalese armory are clearly of British origin, and some are French, a relatively small number of anomalous form and different material are probably of native manufacture, previously undocumented. Variation in quality also suggests multiple sources, some of which may have been black market or irregular. Different damage patterns represent wear and re-sharpening, fitting to guns, and use in flint-and-steel fire-starting. The flints reveal some patterns in the interaction of the British Empire with its colonial enterprises.