flintlock

noun

Etymology: From flint + lock.

1. An early type of firearm, using a spring-loaded flint to strike sparks into the firing pan.

   “But then I had the flintlock by me for protection. ¶ There were giants in the days when that gun was made; for surely no modern mortal could have held that mass of metal steady to his shoulder. The linen-press and a chest on the top of it formed, however, a very good gun-carriage; and, thus mounted, aim could be taken out of the window,[…].”

2. A type of lock used on muskets, rifles, and pistols from the early 17th to the mid-19th century.