Soldier on guard holding his arquebus diagonally upward with his right hand, while letting the barrel fall in his left hand (no. 35), ca. 1600
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A soldier on guard, full-length, facing right, holding a matchlock (a specific type of firearm) with his right hand, the barrel pointing diagonally upwards (no. 35), ca. 1600. He is just letting the barrel fall into his left hand, which also holds a lit match. Plate 35 in the instructions for handling the matchlock: Brief enseignement, sur la representation des figures, du droit maniement de l'Harquebuse. Part of the illustrations in a French edition of J. de Gheyn's Wapenhandelinghe: J. de Gheyn, Maniement d'armes, d'arquebuses, mousquetz et piques : en conformité de l'ordre de Mour le Prince Maurice, Prince d'Orange, Amsterdam 1608. Military affairs around 1600.
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam’s own description