What is this thing? Found in a creek bed that I explored yesterday.”What is this thing? Found in a creek bed that I explored yesterday. It is 17.8 pounds and 5 inches in diameter. It was found in Kentucky.” Any ideas?

Holding History in Your Hands: What Cannonballs Teach Us About the Past
Posted onFebruary 9, 2026 ByadminNo Commentson Holding History in Your Hands: What Cannonballs Teach Us About the Past
Many people first encounter history not through textbooks, but through moments of touch—standing in a museum or historic site and being invited to hold a heavy object from another era while a guide explains its role. Feeling the weight of the past makes distant events tangible, transforming dates and names into lived experience. These encounters…

Many people first encounter history not through textbooks, but through moments of touch—standing in a museum or historic site and being invited to hold a heavy object from another era while a guide explains its role. Feeling the weight of the past makes distant events tangible, transforming dates and names into lived experience. These encounters help bridge the gap between modern life and the realities that once shaped communities and nations.

Cannonballs are among the most recognizable artifacts from earlier centuries of warfare. Typically cast as iron spheres, they were designed for use in cannons from the medieval period through the 1800s. Though simple in appearance, they reflected the military knowledge of their time and were used in both land and naval conflicts. Some were solid, intended to breach walls or hulls, while others were designed differently for specific tactical purposes. Their form tells a story of evolving technology and strategy.