Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer

This is a full sized model of a 17th century Fire Arrow Rocket of Sweden, the oldest known extant rocket specimen in the world. The original, dating to about 1600, is in the Royal Army Museum (Kungl. Armémuseum) in Stockholm. The specimen contains a bundle of three gunpowder rocket tubes wrapped in a fabric material. Around the fabric was contained an incendiary composition.

The three rockets propelled the arrow toward a target. The barbed arrowhead insured that it stuck to its wooden or other inflammable target. At the end of the rockets, fuses or powder ignited the incendiary composition so that the whole burst into flame and burned the target. The model was donated to the Smithsonian in 1976 by the George Marsden Design Company.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin United States of America Type MODELS-Missiles & Rockets Manufacturer George Marsden Design
 Dimensions 3-D: 215.3 × 17.1 × 15.6cm (84 3/4 × 6 3/4 × 6 1/8 in.)
 Materials Wood
Natural Fabric
Cardboard
Steel
Varnish
Paint
Adhesive
 Inventory Number A19762058000 Credit Line George Marsden Design Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
For more information, visit the Smithsonians Terms of Use.