Design for the Decoration of the Barrel Tang Surround of a Firearm 1772 - 1830

Curator: What strikes you first about this drawing? The ornamentation feels rather… theatrical. Editor: My eye immediately goes to the face. It’s earthy and organic, yet meticulously planned for something meant to adorn a weapon. There is some strange labor at play here. Curator: That face is the focal point for sure! What we're seeing here is "Design for the Decoration of the Barrel Tang Surround of a Firearm," made with ink on paper, placing its creation sometime between 1772 and 1830, by Nicolas Noël Boutet. Editor: Ink on paper—it's a blueprint! Look at how delicately the artist has rendered those cornucopias and leafy volutes. Consider the artisanal skills—drawing, engraving, gunsmithing—converging to create a luxury item of war. What statement is this fusion of ornament and power making? Curator: Perhaps the ability to invoke nature, through classical symbols, while wielding technology and death? The cornucopias speak of abundance and prosperity, but they flank a rather severe, almost grotesque, central design. I'm intrigued by that juxtaposition, that dialogue. Editor: Dialogues always cost something, and the cost of such refinement is the gun itself. I am sure its decoration elevated its value. How did this affect gun ownership in this time? What did a Boutet-decorated firearm signify about its possessor? Wealth, status, even taste, perhaps. Curator: It is so interesting that you draw a line from its visual qualities to the impact of production on class identity! I look at the symbolic weight and wonder if this “mask” is meant to ward off evil, or imbue the weapon with a kind of power derived from classical iconography. Editor: Either way, this drawing reminds us that weapons, even in their design stage, are products shaped by social, economic, and aesthetic forces. The layers of labour needed to produce a refined weapon become quite apparent. Curator: Seeing this image helps connect us with craft, power, and how symbols echo throughout history. Editor: Exactly, and thinking about that labour gives this small drawing a resonance beyond its delicate lines.