Dog lock musket

The earliest incarnation of the flintlock ignition system was the dog lock. The dog was the safety catch that held the weapon in the halfcocked position. When it was fully cocked, the dog fell away allowing the weapon to fire. These muskets were the replacements for the old matchlock ignition system. The military of the late 1600’s used these 42 inch .69 calibre weapons as their standard arm. In wide use from the mid 17th to the early 18th centuries, these guns were common during the “Golden Age” of piracy.