Gatling Guns in Buenos Aires

gatlinggun

My new favorite museum in Buenos Aires is the Museo de Armas de la Nación. The kids adored it. It’s not too big. What’s not to love?

I encourage you to take a walk through this historic building laid out like a rabbit warren, each room containing its own treasures. You will be treated to a mix of very old guns (handguns and shotguns), historic knives and swords, ancient spear replicas, cannons, Gatling guns, suits of armor, a life-size diorama of traditional Japanese warriors, collections of toy soldiers, and, yes, even a gas mask designed for a war horse.

One of the things that struck me while perusing these killing artifacts was the shift in personalization that happened upon the advent of mass production. Older swords and guns were often heavily decorated, and one could tell, treasured by their owners. Their import to survival reflected in their painstakingly beautiful adornments.

Modern weapons, by contrast, seemed cold and plain.

I also wondered about the difference between curved swords and straight swords — what were the advantages and disadvantages of both? From what I can tell, it seems that the curved blades were used by cavalry men and were good for slashing motions. Infantrymen, on the other hand, were issued straight swords so they could impale their enemies with a thrusting motion in hand-to-hand combat.

Apparently impaling is difficult with a curved sword. Who knew?

Pictured above is a Gatling gun that was used in the Revolución del Parque in 1890.

This entry was posted on Friday, November 6th, 2009 at 5:49 pm. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

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5 Responses to “Gatling Guns in Buenos Aires”

  1. Buenos Aires Expats - Online Community of Expatriates and guide to living in Buenos Aires, Argentina November 7th, 2009 at 12:04 pm

    [...] 07 November Gatling Guns in Buenos Aires[micheleandtom.com] My new favorite museum in Buenos Aires is the Museo de Armas de la Nación . The [...]

  2. Anquises November 9th, 2009 at 9:34 am

    ¿Ha visitado Vd. el Museo de Ciencias Naturales de Bs. As.? Está ubicado en el Parque del Centenario. Es digno de ver, no sólo por el contenido, sino también por el hermoso edificio.
    Hay un museo histórico y otro de automóviles antiguos en Luján (una ciudad ubicada a unos 60 Km de Bs As), en esta estación del año el clima es agradable para pasar unas horas en la ciudad.
    Por último, está el Museo de Ciencias Naturales de La Plata (a 50 Km de Bs As) uno de los mas importantes de Sudamérica y que, entre otras cosas, exhibe una momia egipcia. Si va a esa ciudad, le recomiendo una visita al interior de la Catedral, donde podrá admirar un maravilloso trabajo en madera tallada detrás del altar.

  3. Michele November 9th, 2009 at 4:17 pm

    You should publish the “Guia Anquises!” Thanks for the suggestions!! We have not yet made it to el Museo de Ciencias Naturales, but we’re going to try to go before we leave. Perusing with young kids often means that we like smaller museums because they are easier to process for the smaller folk. Hence our love of the small and the weird when it comes to museums.

  4. Delfina November 10th, 2009 at 7:44 am

    So this is where I can leave my recommendations? ;)
    You and your children will probably enjoy this place: http://www.mpc.org.ar (Museo Participativo de Ciencias – Centro Cultural Recoleta)

    I´ll definitely visit the Museo de Armas with my nephew! Thanks a lot! I keep enjoying your blog.

  5. Michele November 10th, 2009 at 6:27 pm

    Yes! Please do leave recommendations. I wish I had known all of this months ago… .

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