Editing Snaphance (section)

{{Short description|Type of firearm mechanism}}
[[file:Snaphaunce guns-Sweedish-mid17cent.jpg|thumb|Swedish snaphance guns from the mid 17th century]]

A '''snaphance''' or '''snaphaunce''' is a type of [[firearm lock]] in which a flint struck against a striker plate above a steel pan ignites the priming powder which fires the gun.<ref>{{cite web|last=Godwin|first=Brian|title=Brian Godwin on The English Snaphance|url=http://briangodwin.co.uk/snaphance.html|access-date=26 November 2012|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130812113121/http://briangodwin.co.uk/snaphance.html|archive-date=12 August 2013}}</ref> It is the mechanical progression of the [[wheellock]] firing mechanism, and along with the [[miquelet lock]] and [[doglock]] are predecessors of the [[flintlock mechanism]]. 

The name is Dutch in origin but the mechanism cannot be attributed to the Netherlands with certainty.

Examples of this firearm can be found in Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East.