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Bullets 1 ICT 11
Bullets 1 ICT 11
Lead sling bullets, ca. 100 g with a winged thunderbolt engraved on one side and
the inscription "Take that" () on the other side. Athens, 4th century BC.
The history of bullets far predates the history of firearms. Originally, bullets were
made out of metal, stone or purpose-made clay balls used as sling ammunition, as
weapons and for hunting. Eventually as firearms were developed, these same items
were placed in front of a propellant charge of gunpowder at the end of a closed
tube. As firearms became more technologically advanced, from 1500 to 1800,
bullets changed very little. They remained simple round (spherical) lead balls, called
rounds, differing only in their diameter.
Expanding bullet loaded in a 6.5x55mm before and after expanding. The long base
and small expanded diameter show that this is a bullet designed for deep
penetration on large game. The bullet in the photo traveled more than halfway
through a moose before coming to rest, performing as designed.
Lead alloy bullets as cast (left), with gas check (center) and lubricated (right).