1:72 Osman Siege Artillery (Mortar) XVII century

A weapon that fires over a wall

A mortar differs from a field gun in the whole logic of its use. The short thick-walled barrel pointed steeply upward and gave the charge an arc at the end of which it fell behind the wall, into a courtyard or among the houses. The Ottoman Empire had a long tradition in siege artillery reaching back to the capture of Constantinople, and in the 17th century its heavy pieces were among the most feared in Europe.

The crew works as one mechanism

Around such a piece a closed group of people moved with firmly divided tasks. The commander measured out the elevation and decided on the charge, one man cleared and loaded, others brought up the shot, and only on the word of command did the man who lit the fuse with a linstock come close. The powder carriers stayed to one side, because the nearness of an open flame was deadly.

Building the scene

A mortar stands still, and for a diorama that is an advantage: one can build around it. Set the piece in a dug-out battery, surround it with wicker gabions filled with earth and place the barrels of ammunition a few paces behind the crew. It is precisely that gap between the powder and the fire that is a detail true to the period which few people notice.

Painting

A bronze barrel will stand a warm shade with a green tinge in the hollows, while a wooden bed turns gray. Figures cast in one piece need only degreasing and a base coat once the seam has been removed. If you want to tie the group together visually, unify the dusty tinge on the footwear and the lower part of the clothing of all the members of the crew — the eye then reads the figures as one working detail.