Narrow Gun

The Narrow Gun is a portable firearm made in the reign of King Sejong, measuring 13.8 cm in length, with an inner bore of 0.9 cm and an outer diameter of 1.4 cm. Two joints are set between the powder chamber, where gunpowder is loaded, and the barrel, the main body of the weapon, and the chamber is made slightly thicker than the rest. It is the smallest type of firearm among the chongtong class of guns, made in 1432, the fourteenth year of King Sejong; because its range was only some 200 bo (paces), debate arose over whether it should continue to be used at all. Even so, large numbers were sent to Pyeongan Province from 1437, and because it was simple both to carry and to fire, even children and women could handle it easily, so that it came into widespread use. It also had the advantage that, in battle, a soldier could carry several on horseback and fire them in succession. It survives without any damage, and, cast with skilled technique, it belongs to the only group of smallest-type cannons known in Korea, making it a valuable piece of cultural heritage.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Nowon-gu, Seoul

Designation

Treasure · 보물