I had a brief break between meetings at Williamsburg, VA this week and was able to sneek away for a coup[le of hours and visit the archeological site for Jamestown Rediscovery. As many of you know, James Fort was rediscovered in 1996 and better than 95% of the original fort was not washed away into the James River as originally thought but was discovered intact just where more accurate readings of original documentation indicated it should be, in a triangular curtain wall enclosure made of trench and pallisados construction wach about 100 yards +/- with a demi-lune at the apex of each angle with the earely church as a generally center point. Remarkably the site was 80% plus undisturbed and provided a tremendous time capsule of early 17th C. arms and armor.

As might be expected, the Fort was primarily a military installation boasting 10-15 cannon and over 300 muskets and calivers. Whereas Harold Peterson based his 1955 book Arms and Armor in Colonial American on the c. 1955 Jamestown excavations, the current work provides a very tight time frame of 1607-1640 as by the latter date the fort was abandoned and in 1699 the capital moved to Williamsburg.

I was astounded at the variety and condition of the recovered items which are handsomely displayed in a new Archeolarium (as it is termed) owned by the APVA, not the US Park Service. Unfortunately, no protography is permitted and there is nothing printed other than on the www.apva.org website. I'll try to give a brief report which ought to encourage any early arms and armor afficieando to make the pilgramage. I am sure much more has been recovered but I was only able to address what was on display.

Helments: No closed variety as at Martin's Hundred (pace Peterson!) but several Italian-style morion cabassetts and a burgonet, very reiminiscent of the German/Northern English style. No Spanish combed morions were mentioned.

Breastplates: Many were found and virtually all apparently very late style mimicking civiliam fashion with the flaired skirt and a vertical crease. In one case, a complete armored burial was reported with helment, breastplate, tassets and rapier. Most of the armor was found in burial fill or in one of several wells. The site of an armorers forge was found where discarded plate was being converted to jacks. The recovered jack-plate was both circular and rectangular about 2x2 inches with a center punched hole. No mail links were found to my knowledge.

Swords. Remarkably most of the recovered sword hilts was baskets, one a very nicely preserved wheel pommel type and a ribbon hilt. No blades were displayed. Several baskets were early English, however. Relatively few rapier hilts were discovered and all dispayed were of iron, not brass. Rapiers were probably owned by the "gentlemen and libertines" Capt. John SAmith reports and the munition grade baskets to the "others." Of course,. I really got a thrill on seeing the baskets as those who know me would attest to! The wheel pommel basket was especially well preserved and very nice! One side note here: the baskets were tiny! The average height for an inhabitant at James Fort was 5'5" based on skeletal evidence and the hands correspondingly small. My hand would just not have fit in at all!

Daggers. Three were displayed, two virtually identical. Both main gauches were still sheathed and had apparently been abandoned, one when a wall probably collapsed and the other in a burial. The entire hilt (including pommel) were wood cores covered in iron plate. No indication of leather grip or wire was evident. The quillons were substantially down-curved with a ring guard on the "out" side. The sheathes wre also apparently iron. Total length was about 10" and the blade width at guard was about 1" I estimated. Interestingly one recovered blade was from a dirk. The blage was about 12" long with a tapered tang. No grip was found. The grip was probably a ballock style as there was no evidence of a pommel or other fittings. The blade was hollow ground in a "+" cross section. Width at the grip was about 1-1/1/2".

Shield. The central boss of a shield was found and it was interesting. Apparently, the shield itself was not of iron as it did not survive. The boss was very "targe-like" in appearence, however, the legend on the display describes it as a buckler. Personally, it looked too "Scottish" to be identified as a buckler. Interestingly, the central boss was the traditional half-spherical shape with a flat plate beneth; however, there was a central brass "rod" with a slotted end like a screw in the center. Could it have been replaced with a short central spike? It extendeds about an inch out from the face of the boss.

Pole arms: Remains of several English "brown" bills were recovered - not suprisingly as over 100 were shipped to the colony after the 1622 Indian massacres. Two ceremoinial halbards were found, one with the shaft 50% intact as it had been thrown or lost in a well. The halbards are pierced and have a faint Griffin creast which was the emblem of Gov. De La Ware who brought a guard of 50 halbardiers with him when he assumed governence of the colony. Also, a burial was recovered whose occupant was interned in a gable-lodded coffin. On top of the coffin was the iron remains of a Captain's leading staff. The staff was utilitarian and obviously a weapon, or half-pike, not a ceremonial emblem of rank.

Shoulder arms: Both musket and calivers were recovered. Mainly locks, of course, but a wide variety: matchlocks of both the lever and trigger types, wheellocks, and snaphaunces all jumbled together.

Pistol. Many of you know a complete Scottish pistol was found but it was not on displayed as it had not been conserved. The stock was wood and the barrel .60 caliber. It would rank as either the oldest or second oldest Scottish pistol extant.

Impedimentia. Buckles from rapier belts, flints, copper and wooden apostles, snouts from priming flask, many other too numerous to mention.

Believe me when I saw a few hours spent here is well worth the time. Sorry no illustrations or photos were available.

Fascinating, I wish there was a catalogue of finds available.

George,
Thanks for the report. We may be in Va. this next summer, and if we are, I'll drag the family along, while I make use of my sketchbook!

--ElJay

Cool, thanks for the information. I really enjoyed the State of Virginia museum last time I was there some years ago, as it was much more interesting and complete than the NPS museum near by. Glad to hear that the State of Virginia is keeping up the good work!

Cheers!

Gordon

Hi George,

Thanks for the information! Very interesting.

Cheers,
Henrik