Presented is an exquisitely crafted hand tooled
replica of a bovine bone Civil War field howitzer. This object reminds
me of work crafted by Prisoners of War while incarcerated by the British in Dartmoor Prison 1775-1825.  The cannon
is a contemporary recreation done in this style and is handcrafted out of bone using the same techniques as 200 years
ago. The model’s carriage is built up from layers of flat bone which are bonded and pegged together with
small bone dowels. The spokes are hand carved, and the barrel and two ram rods appear to have been turned. Numerous individual
pieces make up this work of art. 

DIMENSIONS:

Length of barrel          8 1/8″

Length overall           14 7/8″

Extreme width             8
1/2″

Extreme height
6″

Diameter Wheel
6 1/2″

Weight:                         2
1/2 lbs

Cannons and howitzers differ in several aspects.
A gun was a long-barreled, heavy weapon that fired solid shot at long range with a low degree of elevation using a large
powder charge. A howitzer had a shorter barrel and could throw shots or shells at a shorter range but at higher
elevations with smaller powder charges. Howitzers were lighter, more maneuverable weapons than guns.

 

HISTORY OF BONE POW ART: The art of French-Prisoner-of-War is
best remembered for their model of sailing ships of war. But they also did other carvings to while away the time. Models
and items like this were made from dried and bleached mutton bones from their meals, sea creature bone. Bone from sea
creatures was a common commodity in England at the time it was a softer material to carve than bone it was used for corsetry
and button manufacturer. It was introduced to the prisoners by the guards, who had a ready market for the finished models.
HM Prison, Dartmoor was built at the time of the Napoleonic Wars, to house prisoners of war, it later became a convict prison
– perhaps the most notorious in the world. Disease was rampant often causing an early termination to the time served by the French
sailors. The worst period of deaths was between November 1809 and April 1810 when 500 men died. The French section of Dartmoor
The Prison Cemetery held just under 2000 men. The men were buried in shallow graves. After burial the wind and rain soon eroded the
sodden peat and the animals grazing on the land, especially pigs began to expose the bones of the men buried there. The sun
bleached their bones. These bones – called ‘Dieppe Ivory’ – were often used in the construction of
ship models and other articles.