pepper-box

thumb|A pepperbox by Allen & Thurber, one of the most common American designs thumb|A mid-19th century four barrel Russian pepperbox pistol

The pepper-box pistol or simply pepperbox (also "pepper-pot", from its resemblance to the household pepper shakers) is a multiple-barrel firearm, mostly in the form of a handgun, that has three or more gun barrels each holding a single shot. The barrels are fired in sequence by a rotating firing mechanism or, more typically, by rotating the entire barrel assembly to bring each barrel in line with a single lock or hammer, similar to the rotation of a revolver's cylinder.