What is "tampion"

Tampion \Tam"pi*on\, n. [F. tampon, tapon, tape, of Dutch or German origin. See Tap a pipe or plug, and cf. Tamp, Tampop, Tompion.] [Written also tampeon, and tompion.]

1. A wooden stopper, or plug, as for a cannon or other piece of ordnance, when not in use.

2. (Mus.) A plug for upper end of an organ pipe.

early 15c., "plug, bung," from Middle French tampon (15c.), nasalized variant of Old French tapon "piece of cloth to stop a hole" (14c.), a suffixed form of Frankish *tappo "stopper, plug," related to Old High German zapfo and Old English tæppa "stopper" (see tap (n.1)). Meaning "wooden plug for the muzzle of a gun" (to keep out rain or seawater) is recorded from 1620s.

n. 1 A wooden plug, or a metal or canvas cover for the muzzle of a gun, a cannon or other piece of ordnance when not in use; a stopper; a bung. 2 (context music English) A plug for the upper end of an organ pipe.

n. plug for the muzzle of a gun to keep out dust and moisture

A tampion or tompion (in the Royal Navy) is a wooden plug, or a metal, canvas, rubber, or plastic cover, for the muzzle of a gun or mortar. Tampions can be found on both land-based artillery and naval guns. Naval tampions have developed into works of art.

Although the cannons of ships of the line were protected as they were retracted inside the ships, many smaller vessels had exposed gundecks which required a plug to protect inside of the barrels. To combat rust when ships were not in action the barrels were sealed, both with a tampion and plugs in the touch hole. A quantity of olive oil and a round shot were left inside in the barrel; With the gun laid horizontally the shot would roll up and down the barrel as the ship caught each wave, effectively lubricating the gun simply through the motion of the ship.

Later, the invention of mobile gun turrets meant that all guns were constantly exposed to water. Hence, when not in use, naval guns were protected by wooden, and, later, rubber, muzzle plugs. They were also used to protect the barrel whenever the guns were placed in storage, for example in the hold where moisture could cause corrosion, and sealed in with putty.

Typically, rubber and plastic tampions can be shot through in case of an emergency. Plastic tampions are normally designed to be expelled by the build-up of pressure in the barrel as the first shell is fired.

Over time, tampions were embossed or engraved with the arms of the unit, and they became collector's items. Nowadays, even warships that typically would not carry heavy guns, such as submarines, have their own badges in the shape of a tampion.