What is significant about the gun Okonkwo points at his wife Ekwefi?

Not too much is significant about the gun Okonkwo owns. As Okonkwo is not a good hunter, it has rarely been fired. When Ekwefi is mad at Okonkwo she remarks the gun 'has never been fired.' Unfortunately Okonkwo hears this, and flies into a rage, discharging the gun next to Ekwefi.