Spring-powered military engines and an ignition device
Red-chalk studies of wheeled spring engines, with a small device noted 'to give fire'
The sheet is covered in red-chalk studies of wheeled military engines, showing bundled leaf-springs or bow-arms mounted on carriages with large wheels, drawn from several angles together with framed housings. A note at the left labels a small device 'to give fire' — an ignition mechanism. The larger engines are drawn but not described in the transcription, and further untranscribed detail is present across the leaf.
On this page
Wheeled spring engines
Several studies show a military engine built on a wheeled carriage, with a bundle of leaf-springs or bent arms driving against a large wheel or drum. The device is drawn in plan and in raised positions, with a framed housing sketched at the lower right.
Small device 'to give fire'
A small mechanism at the left is annotated as a device 'to give fire' — an igniter for setting a charge or fuse alight.
