Brief Description:  The "Basilic" or Orban's Great Bombard was a colossal 15th-century siege cannon designed by Hungarian engineer Orban. Measuring 27 feet (8.2 m) long with a 30-inch (76 cm) caliber, it fired massive 600- to 1,500-pound stone projectiles over a mile. It was notoriously slow, requiring up to 70 oxen and hundreds of men to transport, and could only fire about seven times a day due to the extreme recoil and need to prevent the barrel from cracking.

The Basilic's core specifications and mechanics include:

Construction: Cast in bronze, with walls 8 inches (20 cm) thick.

Projectile Weight: The cannonballs weighed between 600 and 1,500 pounds (270 to 680 kg).

Maneuverability: Required 60 oxen and hundreds of men to move.

Operation: Placed on timber skids to absorb recoil, the gun had to be carefully re-chocked and aligned after every single shot. The crew also had to frequently oil the barrel with warm olive oil to prevent the metal from fracturing under the extreme heat.

Orban first offered this super-sized bombard design to Byzantine Emperor Constantine XI. However, because the Byzantine Empire was financially strained and lacked the necessary materials, they declined. Orban then brought his engineering to the Ottoman Empire, where Sultan Mehmed II gladly funded and commissioned the casting of the weapon.