Firearms and drum
At Palazzo Silva, there are also various examples of firearms that, due to their variety and characteristics, cover a time span from the late 16th to the 20th century. The collection represents a fairly comprehensive repertoire of firearms commonly used in both civilian and military contexts throughout Europe. Among the most interesting pieces are a musketoon, a flintlock arquebus from the German area, and several military rifles. The collection also includes military weapons converted for hunting purposes, shortened, or transformed to percussion; various mid-19th-century military percussion rifles are also present. There are hunting and precision firearms with rifled barrels. Among the more recent firearms, there are models converted from percussion to breech-loading, as well as various breech-loading rifles. A modest group of exotic weapons arrived in the collection during the colonial period. Finally, there is a small but precious selection of powder flasks and bottles made from different materials to contain gunpowder, along with a series of mechanisms from muskets, arquebuses, and rifles.
A military drum from the Savoyard regiment ‘Tarantaise
Among the memorabilia in the collection, there is a rare drum donated at the end of the 19th century. After initial analysis, it was identified as one of the military drums that came into use in the Savoyard regiments during the reign of Carlo Emanuele III, dating back to the third quarter of the 18th century. The instrument is made of wood, and fortunately, the original skin, with its rope tensioners, and the sticks to play it have been preserved.
