Man Learns His Paperweight Is Actually a Live Explosive — ‘Who’s the Dummy Here?’
This is why artillery makes a terrible desk decoration.
Texas man Steve Martin discovered something shocking about the paperweight he’d been using for years. The paperweight in question? An artillery shell from the Civil War.
Martin said his son found the shell during a fishing trip and gave it to him. Believing it was inert, Martin kept it on his desk for years as a conversation piece. As Smithsonian Magazine reported, he said, “We all thought, ‘Well, it’s some kind of dummy bomb.’”
That assumption proved incorrect after Martin mentioned the shell to a truck driver with a military background, who suggested it could still be live. Martin then contacted local authorities.
Officials Determined the Shell Still Contained Explosives
After Martin contacted his local sheriff’s office, explosive disposal experts and an emergency medical team were sent to his residence. Explosive disposal specialists examined the shell and identified it as a live Parrott round. They transported it to Camp Bullis, where it was safely detonated.
Martin told KENS5 the experience changed how he’ll treat unusual objects in the future. He told KENS5, “I thought it was really some sort of dummy. Now I’m thinking this thing is making a dummy out of me. Who’s the dummy here?”
He learned an important lesson and plans to be much more careful in the future about what items he places on his desk.
Martin Isn’t the Only Person to Unknowingly Possess Historic Explosives
Finding surviving explosives from the Civil War era is rare but does happen on occasion. It’s much more common for people to stumble over ones dating to World War II, though. However, at least a handful of live explosives from the Civil War have randomly turned up over the years.
Similar discoveries have occurred in recent years. In 2021, a Maryland resident reported what turned out to be an unexploded Civil War cannonball that had been passed down through family members. In 2023, an archaeologist using a metal detector uncovered a 10-pound artillery shell buried about 20 inches beneath Gettysburg National Military Park.
While Civil War discoveries are uncommon, unexploded World War II ordnance is uncovered more frequently. Recent discoveries include a 1,100-pound bomb found beneath a backyard in England and a 550-pound bomb that detonated at a Japanese airport without causing injuries.
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