RARE AND POSSIBLY UNIQUE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR DYNAMITE SHELL.

SN NSN. This shell is pictured in an early Bannerman catalog and is thought to be the only surviving specimen and we can find no others in any museum or institutional collection, though several of “Sims-Dudley” dynamite cannon are found. These special pneumatic guns saw actual use in the Spanish-American War with Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders who had a special “Dynamite Gun” battery. One of the guns was present at San Juan Hill, but it was not used since the ammunition had been misplaced, and was later found in a medical aid station. The guns did see use in the siege of Santiago. Theodore Roosevelt was not in love with these guns as he thought they had poor range and had to be reset after each shot; other officers did write glowing reports, however. The US government purchased 16 dynamite guns and 100 rounds of ammunition in 1897 intending to send all sixteen of its dynamite guns to Cuba, but the plans were never put into effect. Some were, however, sent to Puerto Rico. The 4th Ohio Volunteer Infantry’s Dynamite Gun Detachment, used the guns near the town of Guayama. Five shots were fired, with the desired effect of quieting the Spanish gunfire realized. The parallel development of high explosives and the inherent problems of the dynamite guns lead to the demise of the dynamite guns. By 1900, the dynamite guns were deemed “not acceptable” by the U.S. Army and all of the Sims-Dudley guns were out of operation. The guns were considered obsolete and sold as surplus. Dynamite guns had shown themselves impractical. One of the guns ended up in the possession of arms dealer Francis Bannerman of New York. During a parade while on a visit to New York after his African expedition, Theodore Roosevelt spotted the gun in a display. As the parade passed the gun, Roosevelt’s eyes were fixed on the gun, and he led his Rough Riders in a cheer for the weapon, perhaps forgetting some of his earlier comments in his nostalgia. One of the Dynamite guns remains today, on San Juan Hill in Cuba. Another is in a museum in Havana. The information cited here came from an excellent article written by Patrick McSherry on this particular gun and much more research and actual reports can be found on “The Spanish-American War Centennial” website, including original ordnance drawings of this shell and its gun stating its specifications including that this shell originally contained 5 lbs of nitroglycerine. The complex fuse for this projectile was armed in flight when an impeller turned inflight and freed a steel ball that could now move freely to strike percussion caps when the projectile hit its target. The percussion primers had a fuse delay of 5 or 6 seconds which would be quite unnerving to the enemy as this projectile hit and possibly bounced around for seconds before the high explosives would cause their damage. There is a safety wire in the nose which would be pulled prior to firing to free the impeller. Only 100 of these sophisticated shells produced and documented shows why surviving cannons are much more common then this unique, surviving projectile. PROVENANCE: Bannerman’s, Dr. J. Nomolos Collection; Springfield Arsenal, LLC Artillery Collection. CONDITION: Very good overall. 36″ overall, including tail made from hollow, brass capped iron tube with spirally twisted zinc vanes (to provide rotation in flight). The body of the shell, including fuse and 3/8″ lead sabot, measure about 23″ with diameter of 2.5″, the bursting chamber about 18″ and the screwed on combination fuse 3-1/2″. The safety wire in the fuze is still present though broken flush with shell body now. 4-54182 (5,000-10,000) – Lot 2097

Auction: Firearms - March 2015

Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

Image	Lot	Price	Description
	2097	$4,025.00	RARE AND POSSIBLY UNIQUE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR DYNAMITE SHELL. SN NSN. This shell is pictured in an early Bannerman catalog and is thought to be the only surviving specimen and we can find no others in any museum or institutional collection, though several of “Sims-Dudley” dynamite cannon are found. These special pneumatic guns saw actual use in the Spanish-American War with Teddy Roosevelt and his Rough Riders who had a special “Dynamite Gun” battery. One of the guns was present at San Juan Hill, but it was not used since the ammunition had been misplaced, and was later found in a medical aid station. The guns did see use in the siege of Santiago. Theodore Roosevelt was not in love with these guns as he thought they had poor range and had to be reset after each shot; other officers did write glowing reports, however. The US government purchased 16 dynamite guns and 100 rounds of ammunition in 1897 intending to send all sixteen of its dynamite guns to Cuba, but the plans were never put into effect. Some were, however, sent to Puerto Rico. The 4th Ohio Volunteer Infantry’s Dynamite Gun Detachment, used the guns near the town of Guayama. Five shots were fired, with the desired effect of quieting the Spanish gunfire realized. The parallel development of high explosives and the inherent problems of the dynamite guns lead to the demise of the dynamite guns. By 1900, the dynamite guns were deemed “not acceptable” by the U.S. Army and all of the Sims-Dudley guns were out of operation. The guns were considered obsolete and sold as surplus. Dynamite guns had shown themselves impractical. One of the guns ended up in the possession of arms dealer Francis Bannerman of New York. During a parade while on a visit to New York after his African expedition, Theodore Roosevelt spotted the gun in a display. As the parade passed the gun, Roosevelt’s eyes were fixed on the gun, and he led his Rough Riders in a cheer for the weapon, perhaps forgetting some of his earlier comments in his nostalgia. One of the Dynamite guns remains today, on San Juan Hill in Cuba. Another is in a museum in Havana. The information cited here came from an excellent article written by Patrick McSherry on this particular gun and much more research and actual reports can be found on “The Spanish-American War Centennial” website, including original ordnance drawings of this shell and its gun stating its specifications including that this shell originally contained 5 lbs of nitroglycerine. The complex fuse for this projectile was armed in flight when an impeller turned inflight and freed a steel ball that could now move freely to strike percussion caps when the projectile hit its target. The percussion primers had a fuse delay of 5 or 6 seconds which would be quite unnerving to the enemy as this projectile hit and possibly bounced around for seconds before the high explosives would cause their damage. There is a safety wire in the nose which would be pulled prior to firing to free the impeller. Only 100 of these sophisticated shells produced and documented shows why surviving cannons are much more common then this unique, surviving projectile. PROVENANCE: Bannerman’s, Dr. J. Nomolos Collection; Springfield Arsenal, LLC Artillery Collection. CONDITION: Very good overall. 36″ overall, including tail made from hollow, brass capped iron tube with spirally twisted zinc vanes (to provide rotation in flight). The body of the shell, including fuse and 3/8″ lead sabot, measure about 23″ with diameter of 2.5″, the bursting chamber about 18″ and the screwed on combination fuse 3-1/2″. The safety wire in the fuze is still present though broken flush with shell body now. 4-54182 (5,000-10,000) – Lot 2097 Auction: Firearms - March 2015 Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

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RARE AND POSSIBLY UNIQUE SPANISH-AMERICAN WAR DYNAMITE SHELL.