#Exhibit of the Month

Fire artillery in Romanian space is attested from the first half of the 15th century. The oldest pieces of artillery are the bronze and iron bombards discovered in the fortresses of Giurgiu, Severin, Bârlad and Orheiul Vechi.

The exposed cannon was discovered in the village of Grinăuți-Moldova, Ocnița district, it dates from the second half of the 15th century. From a typological point of view, in the central-eastern European space, the cannon from Grinăuți-Moldova is a unique piece.

It is a short-barreled mortar-type artillery piece that fits perfectly into the line of bombards in Europe used in the second half of the 15th century - the beginning of the 16th century.

The cannon was used to launch projectiles (bullets) at the enemy behind fortifications or natural obstacles. The projectiles were loaded through the mouth of the barrel. The firing angle was over 45 degrees, and the trajectory of the projectile was curved with a range of up to 300-400 m. In Europe, these cannons were called mortars, and in Romanian space they were designated by the word piua, thanks to the shape of this object.

The cannon from Grinăuți-Moldova was discovered by chance in the "Red Bank" location, located 15 km southwest of the Lipnicu plain where Lord Stefan the Great defeated the Tatars in 1470. According to a legend from the village of Grinăuți-Moldova, in the "Red Bank" location, a military confrontation between Moldovans and Tatars would have taken place prior to the battle of Lipnic.

The cannon from Grinăuți-Moldova is made of cast iron by the casting method. The barrel is provided with a single hole in the front, the opposite side being blocked by the flat bottom with flared edge. The inside of the pipe is a relatively wide channel that narrows slightly towards the bottom. Loading with powder and cannonballs was done through the mouth of the cannon. A hole is provided near the base for the wick to ignite and detonate the dust inside the cannon. The surface of the cannon is embossed. The edge of the mouth is thickened, slightly curved. Two cylindrical supports with a diameter of 3.5 cm are provided in the central part of the body of the cannon in the axis, which served as handles for the installation and handling of the cannon on a wooden frame.

The length of the cannon is 30.0 cm, the maximum diameter of the body - 17.8 cm, the outside diameter of the mouth - 19.4 cm, the diameter of the body in the middle - 13.5 cm, the outside diameter of the base - 17.0 cm, the caliber of the cannon (mouth diameter) is 12.8 cm, the length of the inner chamber of the cannon - 27.4 cm, the weight of the cannon - 18,730 kg.

The cannon from Grinăuți-Moldova entered the custody of the National Museum of History of Moldova through the care of local history teacher Vlad Lvovsky.

The conservation of the piece of cultural heritage was carried out by Valeriu Bubulici, and the reconstruction of the atmosphere by the restorer Mihail Culașco.

Virtual Tour

Exhibitions

"With coats of arms at the table - in the world and at home..."

Exhibition of everyday objects dedicated to the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Heraldry Cabinet within the Office of the President of the Republic of Moldova

March 30 – April 30, 2023

In our century, coats of arms represent the most solemn segment of emblems in use. Their highly elaborate artistic aspect and the enciphered symbolism that cannot be penetrated at first adds to the solemnity a touch of mystery intimidating to the man of today. Or, once the coat of arms could be seen everywhere, because it also had the function of a property mark. It was worn by numerous objects, including everyday and not very solemn ones.

On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Heraldry Cabinet within the Office of the President of the Republic of Moldova (April 1, 2013, by the appointment of the first State Heraldist of the Republic of Moldova), this exhibition is part of the series of events promoting heraldic knowledge and use, supported by the National Commission of Heraldry attached to the President of the Republic of Moldova, from the moment of its establishment, with the support of traditional scientific partners, among which the National Museum of History of Moldova takes the leading place.

The purpose of the exhibition is to sensitize public opinion on the fact that a coat of arms can and must be used in everyday life without any restraint, in some mundane activities and situations. It is primarily about family and territorial coats of arms, because national symbols - official, cultural and natural - have never left our visual space, occupying more and more space.

The table, which brings together family members or friends, colleagues or relatives, has always been an opportunity to promote ideas. Table, tea and coffee services, cutlery, napkins and tablecloths, adjacent decorations and surrounding furniture began to be decorated with coats of arms right from the appearance of heraldic insignia. Thus, the compartments "A tea with a coat of arms", "A cup of coffee with a coat of arms", "A dairy with a coat of arms", "A beer with a coat of arms", "A wine with a coat of arms", "A strong drink with a coat of arms", "At the table with the Dutch royal family" reflects precisely this extremely widespread worldwide use of the coat of arms and complementary emblems.

The compartment "At the work table with coat of arms" marks the use of armoured objects when the man is working: at the writing table, at the sewing table, etc. Two other compartments "At the gaming table with a coat of arms" and "At a cigarette with a coat of arms" mark the other facet of human nature - the pleasure of entertainment. Two applied, historical domains were chosen, which also correspond to the structure of the collection.

The last two sections - "Daily heraldic use in the Republic of Moldova" and "Daily heraldic use in Romania" - present the situation in the Romanian space, which has not evolved much and is still mainly limited to the promotion of national heraldic symbols - the coat of arms and the state flag -, the other types of heraldic and complementary emblems remaining in the shadows. This exhibition is organized precisely to change this situation in our country, where the economic premises already allow the embodiment of such ideas that must not be delayed.

After the exhibition closes, most of the exhibited pieces, with historical value, will be donated to the Museum.

The exhibition "With the coat of arms on the table - in the world and at home..." will be open from March 30 to April 30, 2023, in the hall on the ground floor of the National History Museum of Moldova, str. 31 August 1989, 121A.