Early Yuan Hand Cannon (Huochong)

Timeline

1. c. 1280–1330Military workshops in Jiangnan and Dadu · ChinaBy the early 14th century, bronze hand cannons existed in the Yuan realm (e.g., a 1332 bronze cannon bearing the Zhishun era name), showing official workshops had mastered lost-wax or clay-mold casting and gunpowder loading, used by gunners in city defense.
2. 1341–1350Yuan provinces · Yuan dynastyDuring the late Yuan turmoil, hand cannons were more widely deployed in defending Jianghuai and Huguang and suppressing uprisings; 1340s archaeology and surviving pieces show bore, powder chamber, and tail-socket structures becoming standardized, used together with fire lances in mixed-fire formations.
3. 1350–1400Nanjing · JiangnanIn the late Yuan peasant wars and early Ming unification wars, captured and copied Yuan hand cannons drove standardization at Ming arsenals; during the Hongwu reign, barrel length, powder charge, and marking systems were further standardized, making the hand cannon standard equipment of the guards and the Shenjiying.