Old bronze cannons, whatzit?

[cannonmn]

I got this cannon from a family that had lived in New York for a long time.  There was a pair of them but one daughter in another state had the twin to this one.  I tried to get it too but was unsuccessful, but at least I got the one. 

It is about  38 inches long overall (34 inches muzzle to basering) and has a 6 pdr. bore.  It is about the smallest 6 pdr. I've ever seen.  It is quite hefty though, maybe weighs 250 lbs. 

What is it?  I think I asked the same question here about a year ago and got no solid info.  No marks at all.  The piece is very well made though.  Look at the square rimbases, very unusual.  I call it a "cadet" gun because I've seen a number of small 6-pounders in bronze that were made for military academies that didn't have enough horses to move the regulation 6's around and wanted something that could be moved by the cadets themselves.  But I have no idea if this is a real cadet gun or not, that's just what I call it.

http://s17.photobucket.com/albums/b62/cannonmn/miscforumsetc/forums7/?action=view&current=63ca92cb.pbw

[Artilleryman]

Could it be that the rimbases are unfinished?  And if that were the case that might explain the absence of markings.  Maybe someone was trying to develop a mountain howitzer.  Just quessing.

[irishman]

I love that barrel! First, I will build this in my dreams. I look for more history.

[cannonmn]

I've seen various shapes of rimbases such as square ones before, also half-rimbases (French), so round isn't the only way they come.  I'm sure the gun was finished.  I'm thinking the lack of markings meant it was made for sale to militias or whomever wanted them rather than governments.  The markings are there mostly because of government regulations.  Often makers put their marks on their products anyway for advertising etc., but I have seen many nice unmarked cannons, both iron and bronze.

[KABAR2]

Cannonmn,

It's an interesting little cannon, by chance could you post some static photo's of it?

your slide shows make it hard to view detail and you don't want to stare at the images too long...... 

[cannonmn]

The slideshows can be stopped, and enlarged.  You just click on one when it pops up, and it should stop.  Click on that one again and it enlarges, then click again and bigger yet.  If that isn't good enuf let me know and I'll get stills posted.

[cannonmn]

Today I found a pic in a book of an 1880's Spanish steel breechloading mountain gun.  The rimbases were sharp-cornered squares just like on this little bronze gun.  I wonder if that was done to aid in quick sighting, when the barrel might not have been designed to be particularly handy for sighting over?  I guess I'll have to go look and see if you can even get a visual line over the top of one of them with the basering as large as it is.  Anyway, it might also be a base for a quadrant since possibly no other place on the top of the tube is flat and/or large enough?