When cannonballs did find their targets, they could cause devastating damage. Weighing at least six pounds, and often much more, they could tear through the thick hulls and masts of enemy ships, sending huge wood splinters flying into anything, and anyone, nearby. Mattera was surprised to learn that the secondary impact from splinters was the cause of most human casualties from naval cannon fire. Slower flying cannonballs often did the most damage because they didn’t penetrate as cleanly through wood, which meant cannons fired from a distance might be the deadliest of them all.
