Archeologist Deni Seymour unearthed a 500-year-old bronze cannon in Arizona near the Santa Cruz River, making it the oldest firearm found in the continental U.S.
The cannon, linked to the 1540 Coronado Expedition, was abandoned during a deadly Native American attack on the Spanish settlement of San Geronimo III.
The poorly forged, unused cannon was likely left behind as the O’odham tribe launched a dawn assault, overwhelming the Spaniards.
Seymour later found a second cannon at the site, damaged from use during the battle. The discovery sheds light on early Spanish-Native American interactions and highlights the O’odham’s resilience.
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