{{Short description|Firearm of the Ottoman Empire}} {{Infobox weapon | name = Shishana | type = Musket | is_ranged = Yes | image = | image_size = 300 | used_by = Ottoman Empire | caption = Shishane with Miquelet Lock | service = 16th century – mid-19th century | production_date = 16th to mid-19th century | part_length = {{cvt|30-60|in|cm}}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Pap |first1=Norbert |title=The Battle of Mohács, 1526 |date=2024 |publisher=Brill |isbn=9789004707498}}</ref> | caliber = {{cvt|.44-.80|in|mm}}<ref name= Astvat>{{cite book |last1=Astvatsaturyan |first1=E.G. |script-title=ru:Турецкое Оружие |trans-title=Turkish Weapons |date=2002 |publisher=Атлант |isbn=5-901555-10-4|language=ru}}</ref> | action = Matchlock, Miquelet, Percussion | wars = }}
The '''Shishana''' or '''Shishane''' ({{langx|tr|şişhane}}, from Persian ''šeš'', "six") was a type of musket<ref>{{Cite book|last=Instituti i Historisë|first=Sektori i Etnografisë|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o-YbAAAAIAAJ&q=shishane|title=Etnografia shqiptare|date=1962|publisher=Akademia e Shkencave e RPSH, Instituti i Historisë, Sektori i Etnografisë|language=en}}</ref> used in the Ottoman Empire, traditionally by the Janissaries, produced by official Ottoman arsenals as well as small gunsmith guilds and shops in the Balkan territories of what is today Bosnia and Herzegovina<ref>{{cite book |last1=Davidson |first1=David |last2=Gaffney |first2=Vincent |last3=Miracle |first3=Preston |title=Croatia at the Crossroads |date=2016 |publisher=Archaeopress Publishing Ltd |isbn=978-1-78491-530-8 |page=258 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4ExmEAAAQBAJ&dq=dzeferdar&pg=PA270}}</ref> and Serbia ({{langx|sh|šišana}}), Macedonia, Kosovo,{{sfn|Stanojević|2004|}} Bulgaria<ref>{{Cite book|last=Daskalov|first=Nikola|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zmwMAQAAIAAJ&q=sliven%20rifle|title=Weaponry of the Past|date=1989|publisher=Sofia Press|language=en}}</ref> & Turkey beginning in the 16th century. It was characterized by a pentagonal or hexagonal buttstock<ref>{{cite book |last1=Elgood |first1=Robert |title=Firearms of the Islamic World|date=1995 |publisher=I.B. Tauris & Co.|location=London|isbn=1-85043-963-X }}</ref> and ball trigger.<ref name=Curčić>{{cite book |last1=Curčić |first1=Vejsil |title=Starinsko Oružje |trans-title=Antique Weapons |date=1926 |url=https://ognjilo.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Starinsko-oruzje-Vejsil-Curcic-p.pdf |publisher=Državna Štamparija |location=Sarajevo|language=bs}}</ref> It is sometimes mistakenly referred to as 'Tüfek' by collectors, though that term simply means 'rifle' in Turkish.
== Origin and usage == The Shishana was originally built with matchlock{{sfn|Bošković|2017|p=258}} but by the late 16th century, the more reliable miquelet lock was introduced.<ref name="Agoston">{{Cite book|last=Ágoston|first=Gábor|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dNqzjfWABSAC&dq=miquelet&pg=PA91|title=Guns for the Sultan: Military Power and the Weapons Industry in the Ottoman Empire|date=2008|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-84313-3 |language=en}}</ref> This would become standard by the late 17th century. This transition was so complete that many earlier matchlock weapons were retrofitted with miquelet locks in the 17th and 18th centuries.<ref name="Agoston" /> Despite significant arms trade with Italy, the Ottomans adopted the Spanish-style "Patilla" variant of the miquelet lock, which became characteristic of the Shishana.
In the 18th century high-quality barrels were produced in central Bosnia<ref>{{cite book |last1=Elgood |first1=Robert |title=The Arms of Greece and Her Balkan Neighbours in the Ottoman Period |date=2009 |publisher=Thames & Hudson|isbn=978-0500251577 }}</ref>, using quality iron ore from Bosnia and Serbia.{{sfn|Bošković|2017|p=258}} It was produced in workshops in Ottoman Serbia since the 17th century and was notably used by the Serbian rebel army in the First Serbian Uprising.{{sfn|Stanojević|2004|p=148}}
After the disbandment of the Janissary corps in 1826, irregular forces (Bashi-Bazouks) and bandits continued using the weapon.
There exists decorated specimen held at museums all over the world. The Croatian History Museum has 54 specimen, most acquired from Bosnia following 1878.{{sfn|Bošković|2017|p=258}}
==Decoration== [[File:Miquelet Rifle MET DP169733.jpg|thumb|Palace Guard Rifle with Ivory Decorated Stock & Khatam styled Rosette inlays.]] Decoration was a paramount aspect of the Shishane. It was considered a mark of honor and status to possess a well-adorned weapon,<ref>{{cite book |last1=Marsigli |first1=Luigi |title=L'Etat Militaire de l'empire Ottoman, ses progrès et sa décadence |date=1732 |publisher=Pierre Gosse |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ovsf5kYz6poC|language=fr}}</ref> and it is rare to find surviving examples without some form of embellishment. Common decorative techniques included extensive inlay work using materials such as ivory, brass, silver, horn, and bone set into the stock. Metal components like the barrel, lockplate, and frizzen were often engraved, with the designs sometimes filled with gold or silver wire, coral, or colored wax.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Elgood |first1=Robert |title=The Arms of Greece and Her Balkan Neighbours in the Ottoman Period |date=2009 |publisher=Thames & Hudson|isbn=978-0500251577 }}</ref>
Certain styles of decoration are often speculatively attributed to specific regions (e.g., Balkan vs. Anatolian workshops), though these attributions are difficult to confirm definitively. Some surviving specimens bear inscribed dates on various components (barrel, lock plate, or under the mainspring) which aids historians and collectors in authenticating and dating them.
==Gallery== R<gallery> File:Luntlåsbössa, 1600-tal - Skoklosters slott - 90994.tif|Matchlock Shishana, 17th c. File:Khalili Collection Islamic Art mtw 1165.1 crop.jpg|Shishana from Gabrovo<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Dobrikov |last2=Kalchev|first1=Ognyan |first2=Violin|script-title=bg:Българските Кремъчни Пушки В Османската Империя 17-19, Произход И Производство, Видове, Производствени Центрове - Сливен И Габрово Век |trans-title=Bulgarian Flintlock Rifles In The Ottoman Empire 17–19, Origin And Production, Types, Production Centers - Sliven And Gabrovo Century |date=2025|publisher=Varna|language=bg}}</ref>, 17th–18th c. File:Miquelet Rifle MET DP169735.jpg|Palace Guard Shishana stocked in ivory, late 18th c. File:Turkish guns 1750-1800.jpg|Shishanas from 1750–1800 File:Ottoman Wall Gun "Metris".jpg|Wall gun, called "Metris"<ref name="Agoston" /> with long range rear sight. File:Trabzon 1900.jpg|Trabzon Irregulars armed with Shishane, 1900 </gallery>
== See also == * Džeferdar, ornate musket from Montenegro * Tançica, a long barreled musket from Albania * Kariofili, musket of the Greek revolution * Boyliya, Bulgarian musket with unique lock * Khirimi, similar long gun from the Caucasus * Jezail, Afghan rifle popularized in media * Moukahla, a North African snaphaunce musket
== References == {{Reflist}} ==Sources== * {{cite book|last=Ágoston|first=Gábor|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dNqzjfWABSAC&dq=miquelet&pg=PA91|title=Guns for the Sultan: Military Power and the Weapons Industry in the Ottoman Empire|date=2008|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-84313-3 |language=en}} * {{cite book|last=Stanojević|first=Ljiljana|title=The First Serbian Uprising and the Restoration of the Serbian State|publisher=Historical Museum of Serbia, Gallery of the Serbian Academy of Science and Arts|date=2004|isbn=978-86-7025-371-1|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eXFpAAAAMAAJ|quote=shishana}} * {{cite journal|last=Bošković|first=Dora|title=Weapons of the Military Frontier in Croatia|journal=Croatia at the Crossroads: A Consideration of Archaeological and Historical Connectivity|publisher=Archaeopress Publishing Ltd|date=2017|isbn=978-1-78491-531-5|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4ExmEAAAQBAJ|quote=Shishanas}}
{{Early firearms}} {{Russo-TurkishWarTurkishInfWeaponsNav}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shishana}} Category:Muskets Category:Firearms of Turkey Category:Weapons of the Ottoman Empire Category:17th-century weapons Category:18th-century weapons Category:19th-century weapons Category:Muzzleloaders