Original Item: Rudyard Kipling gave the name Screw Gun to the British Ordnance RML 2.5-Inch Mountain Gun in his famous poem Screw Guns, and the gun has been known thus ever since. The Ordnance RML 2.5-Inch Mountain Gun was made with the barrel in two parts so that it could be broken down into loads that could be carried by animal transport, usually mules but occasionally camels. The two sections of the gun were connected by a threaded, or screwed, joint.

RML stands for Rifled Muzzle Loading; that is, powder and projectile were loaded from the muzzle, while the rifling consisted of three spiral grooves. Studs on the exterior of the projectile fitted into the grooves to impart spin. Studded shells of a wide range of calibers were used by the Army and Navy of the U.K. and are a very significant stage in artillery development. Although the studs on our 2.5-inch screw gun shells are zinc, zinc had been replaced by copper in calibers used by the Royal Army and Royal Navy, and most surviving studded shells have copper studs.

The Ordnance 2.5-Inch Mountain Gun was made with the barrel in two parts so that it could be broken down into loads that could be carried by animal transport, usually mules but on occasion camels.

The two sections of the gun were connected by a threaded, or screwed, joint.

Originally introduced in 1879, the gun first saw use in Afghanistan in that same year. It continued in service until it was retired in 1903. In addition to countless engagements in India and Afghanistan, it was also used by British forces during the Second Boer War of 1899 – 1902, and later, during the First World War, some were taken from garrisons in South Africa and employed by the Nyasaland-Rhodesian Field Force in the campaign in German East Africa in 1916.

The projectiles for the RML 2.5-Inch Gun included Common Shell, Star Shell, and Canister. Common Shell was the old name for what is now known as Explosive Shell, which consisted of a hollow iron or steel shell, an explosive filler, and a nose fuse. When the 2.5 was introduced, the filler was black powder.

THIS SHELL IS EXTREMELY HISTORICAL AND EXTREMELY RARE. Since the entire service life of the first model screw gun was in the colonies, ammunition stores were not kept in the home islands, and consequently virtually none have become available to collectors until now.

Approximate Specifications:

Diameter: 2.5 inches

Length: 4.5 inches

Weight: 3.4 lb