The Digital Ark: Early Modern Collections of Curiosities in England and Scotland, 1580-1700

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du Son, M. (1604 - fl. 1665)

Alias Douson [Alias]
Alias d'Esson [Alias]

Sometimes spelled "Douson," "de Son," or "d'Esson." He was an engraver and inventor (Hall and Hall, 2.478 n.4). Hollister-Short describes du Son as
projector and confidence man, [who] had, in 1665, only recently arrived in England after nearly thirty years (1635-64) in Holland. According to Joachim Becher, he had left Rotterdam in great haste after his charlatanism had become notorious. How he had, within months of his arrival in England, gulled the good-natured Moray will be evident from his claim—-made nearly forty years after Weindl—-to be the inventor of gunpowder blasting. But knowledge of the technique on the practical, or any other, level was obviously then very novel in England as would appear from the decision to publish his description. Yet to do justice to du Son, his account when set against the continental evidence must be judged as accurately observed and in some respects indeed very up-to-date, while the engravings which accompanied his piece are in fact the earliest representations of boring tool and plugs that I have been able to find (45-6).

Robert Moray refers to him as an "inventor" (Beaumont, "Letter," p. 854).
 Artist - engraver
 Relevant locations: Lived at or near Rotterdam, South Holland
Lived at or near London, England
 Relationships: du Son was a associate or acquaintance (general) of Robert Moray (c.1608/9-1673)

 Linked print sources: as Author (in assoc. with a ms or print source) - A way to break easily and speedily the hardest rocks, communicated by the same person, as he received it from Monsieur Du Son, the inventor.
as Mentioned or referenced by - A Letter from Mr. J: Beaumont of Stony-Easton in Sommersetshire to one of the R.S. concerning a New way of Cleaving Rocks.
as Mentioned or referenced by - Gunpowder and Mining in Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century Europe.
as Mentioned or referenced by - The Correspondence of Henry Oldenburg.
 References in Documents:
Selections from Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London (1665-1669)
A Letter from Mr. J: Beaumont of Stony-Easton in Sommersetshire to one of the R. S. concerning a New way of Cleaving Rocks.

A worthy Gentleman, who for many years has been a Considerable adventurer in the Lead Mines on Mendip hills, being in London a while since, was pleas'd to acquaint me that the Miners there, within these twelve months, had gotten a new way of Cleaving Rocks with Gunpowder, whereupon I desir'd he would please to favour me with a Present of the Instruments us'd in it, which I conceiv'd would not be unacceptable in the Repository at Gresham Colledge, where I have now caus'd them to be deliuered.

The first Instrument, which by the miners is call'd the Borier described Fig. 7 is made of Iron, and is 2 foot 2 Inches in length, it is an Inch square at the steeled end from a to b, and somewhat lesse in the other part: the use of this Instrument is to make a hole in the Rock deep enough to receive the Powder: the second Instrument, call'd the Gun represented Fig. 8. is 6. Inches in length, 1ΒΌ diameter, and has a hole drill'd through it to receive the priming Powder. The first Instrument is manag'd thus, one man holds it on the Rock and turns it round, while another beats it down with a hammer of five or six pounds weight; when the hole is made somewhat deeper then the length of the Gun, they dry it with a rag, and put into it about 2 or 3 Ounces of Powder, over which they put a thin paper, and on it place the Gun, which they bind firmly into the hole, by driving in against the flat side of the upper part of it, the third Instrument, which is a little Iron wedge 4 inches in length, by the Miners call'd a Quinnet described Fig. 9. when this is done, they pass down a wire through the hole drill'd in the Gun, and pierce the (854) Paper which covers the Powder and then they prime the Gun and lay a traine and goe up out of the work before the Powder comes to take fire; the Paper is put at first overover the Powder, left when the Gun and Quinet are drivedriven down, the tooles may strike fire and kindle the Powder.

In number: 5. of the Philosoph. Transact. set forth by Mr. Oldenburg there is a way of breaking Rocks with Gunpowder Communicated by Sr. Robert Moray. as he received it from Monsr. du Son the Inventor, and there is a draught of the Instruments for that purpose, but in regard those Instruments differ in severall things from these, I thought it might not be amiss if these were likewise Inserted.

I know the use of these Instruments will be of great advantage to Miners, and if there are any Minerall works where they are not yet receiv'd, the Miners may doe well to try them; for (beside what will be sav'd in timber in a year that is usd in burning Rocks, which is very considerable,) we know that as soon as a man has fired his Powder and broken the Rock, he may presently go to work again, whereas after a fire is laid in a Shaft, a man can scarce go to work in 24 hours after, the Rocks being too hot to suffer him.