The pepper shaker, also called a pepper revolver and a pepper pot (because of its resemblance to a pepper mill), is a short, multiple-barreled, repeating weapon, having three or more barrels aligned around a central axis. It frequently appears as a multi-shot pistol. Pepper shakers exist in all firing systems: match, wheel, flintlock, percussion, Lefaucheux, rimfire cartridges, and centerfire cartridges.
In the 15th century, several cannons were attached to a stock, being fired one by one by means of a match. Around 1790, the pepper shakers were built on the basis of the flintlock. This type of firearm was popular in the United States from the 1830s until the Civil War.