Canisius, an advocate of the material, believed it had great potential for artillery use. In 1863, trials were conducted by Major T.T.S. Laidley at the Frankford Arsenal, where results were promising enough to warrant further investigation. Chevalier von Lorenz also designed a bullet for the Type II cartridge, intended to reduce the possibility of double loading. In early 1864, a quantity of guncotton was sent to the U.S. for expanded testing, including trials with a .58 caliber variant. By September 1864, these trials were concluded; despite recognized advantages, no purchase records exist for further acquisition.
Captain George T. Balch later instructed Captain Stephen V. Benet to place several of these cartridges in the artillery museum. It remains unclear whether these were small arms cartridges or part of the shipment of 500 artillery charges sent from Austria. Importantly, records confirm that Frankford Arsenal held guncotton cartridges, strengthening their presumed link to examples used in the Centennial Exhibition of 1876.
The cartridge in this listing is one of two examples displayed at the International Exhibition in Philadelphia in 1876. A ten-drawer cabinet was constructed to showcase the evolution of small arms ammunition. Drawer No. 3 contained transitional and patent types with fixed propellants.
•No. 89 is this exact .54 cartridge, formerly in the collection of Terry White.
•No. 90, a companion piece, came from the Dean Thomas collection.
•Both examples are attributed (possibly) to the collection of Berkley Lewis and are listed in his monograph on the 1876 Exhibition.
These cartridges are extremely scarce, with fewer than a handful known to exist. In his article, George Priestel documented eight Type II guncotton cartridges, but this count may be high—at least two can no longer be accounted for, leaving an estimated five to six examples, most held by institutional museums.
This cartridge is the exact example pictured in Berkley Lewis’s monograph, Small Arms Ammunition at the International Exposition, Philadelphia, 1876. The best image appears on page 58, and the cartridge is easily identified by its broken stick and unique guncotton weave. Notably, this same image was used in the McKee & Mason bullet reference book.
This cartridge is in excellent condition, all things considered—likely one of the original 1863 specimens shipped from Austria and stored at Frankford Arsenal. It holds the added distinction of being a published example, with confirmed exhibition history at the 1876 Centennial Exposition and provenance to the Terry White collection.
This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire one of the rarest transitional cartridges known. Most advanced collections of early small arms ammunition lack a guncotton cartridge, making this an extraordinary chance to fill a major gap.
Bullet Measures: OAL 1.177” D .530” C .285” x .160” Weight 440-Grains
Cartridge Measures OAL 3.383” D .530” Weight 476-Grains
Reference: "Small Arms Ammunition at the International Exposition Philadelphia, 1876” Lewis, Pg. 50, Plate 10, Third Drawer, No. 89. Exact Item Photographed on Pg. 58, Plate 25, No. G
Reference: "The History and Development of Small Arms Ammunition” Hoyem, Vol. 1, Pg. 47
Reference: "Small Arms and Ammunition in the United States Service” Lewis, Plate 37, No. A
Reference: "The Ordnance Department at the 1876 Philadelphia Exposition” Murphy Pg. 131
Reference: "Round Ball to Rimfire” Thomas, Vol. 1, Pg. 134, No. 153
Reference: "International Ammunition Association” Issue 516, Priestel, Pg. 32
Recovered: Ex. Terry White Collection
