History of Russian cannon factories in the exhibits of the Mining Museum

Abstract

In the collection of the Mining Museum of the St. Petersburg Mining University there are individual samples and entire collections from the Russian army: the Aleksandrovsky cannonfoundry of the Olonetsky mining district, the Perm cannon factory, the Kamensky cast-iron foundry, the Nizhneesettsky iron-making plant and others. There are models, real samples and blanks of guns and ammunition, tools and metalworking devices, models of metallurgical furnaces, samples of iron, steel and alloys, ores and fuel. The collection covers the historical period from the end of the XVIII century to the first quarter of the XX century. In this article, exhibits related to the development of smooth-bore artillery, which complemented the museum collection from 1786 to 1880, will be considered. Museum exhibits related to the development of rifled artillery deserve particular publication. The Mining University, founded in 1773 by Empress Catherine II, along with other specialists in the mining industry, trained metallurgists and mechanics to work in cannon and equipment-making factories. The exhibits of the Mining Museum served primarily as an educational tool and were visual aids for students. The level of education provided in the university was high, thanks to the qualified faculty, laboratory and museum complexes. Well-known graduated from the Mining University include P. P. Anosov, N. V. Voronzov, P. M. Obuhov, N. A. Yossa and A. A. Iznoskov. Their names are inextricably linked with the Zlatousts, Olonets, Perm and Obukhov weapon factories. The factory samples were received by the museum the same year that production of weapons and tools was started at the factories. This collection clearly illustrates the history of the development of Russian artillery in general and Russian cannon and shell factories in particular. It is the first publication in the historiography of this topic.