A punt gun is a type of extremely large shotgun used in the 19th and early 20th centuries for shooting large numbers of waterfowl for commercial harvesting operations and private sport.
Punt guns were usually custom-designed and so varied widely, but could have bore diameters exceeding 2 inches (51 mm) and fire over a pound (? 0.45 kg) of shot at a time. A single shot could kill over 50 waterfowl resting on the water's surface. (Plus several catfish and an eel!)
This static display is located at the
Sottish Maritime Museum. [Ed Note: Highly recommend you visit this museum site. Tons of early maritime history.]
They were too big to hold and the recoil so large that they were mounted directly on the punts used for hunting, hence their name.
Begs several questions: How far this fellow was flung, firing this #4 gauge Weapon of Mass Destruction? When did he regain his sense of hearing?
What was the fellow supporting this weapon thinking?
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Did not know too much about punt guns....thanks for sharing and very interesting article. Would not want to shoot a gun that huge. Shooting a .44 mag is rather awesome!
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