A Beautiful, Pirate Age, Late 17th Century Brass Barrel Blunderbuss By William Wallis & John Hall. Barrel Proofs of 1690. John Hall Supplier of Fuzees, Buccaneer Guns & Blunderbusses For The Royal African Co. King William IIIrd to Queen Anne Period

A stunning blunderbuss desirable for service, both on the company galleons of the merchants, and, the pirate's galleons that pillaged them in the 17th century seven seas.

Finest walnut stock, all brass furniture finely engraved, widely flared brass barrel proofed by its maker William Wallis, with his crowned WW proof stamp, and also, bearing King William IIIrd's 1690 proofs. the steel lock engraved for the guns maker John Hall.

In the mid to late 17th century in the Western world, the period from the 1680s to the 1720s, has come to be known as the ‘Golden Age’ of piracy.

This was a time of heightened pirate activity, when thousands of ships in the Atlantic and beyond became the prey of roving bands of sea-robbers. Many of the most infamous pirates and buccaneers from history come from this era, Edward 'Blackbeard' Teach, Captain William Kidd, Anne Bonny, 'Calico' Jack Rackham, Henry Morgan, Stede Bonnet and more.

The Caribbean and the east coast of North America were the main areas that saw a surge in activity in the early 1700s. Ships carrying expensive cargoes were often intercepted, and stolen goods were sold in nearby islands and European colonies. Some pirates operated further afield, off the West African coast or in the Indian Ocean, where the island of Madagascar became a key base.

The real Pirates of the Caribbean
"The ‘golden age’ of piracy coincided with the expansion of English, later British, colonial activity around the Caribbean," writes Blyth. "This began in earnest with the capture of Jamaica from Spain in 1655." While piracy has been traditionally portrayed as a male-dominated pursuit, historical evidence suggests that women actively participated in piratical activities during various periods. In the Golden Age of Piracy, from the late 17th to the early 18th centuries, the presence of women in pirate crews became more pronounced. Anne Bonny and Mary Read are two notable examples of women who defied societal norms and navigated the perilous waters of piracy alongside their male counterparts. Their inclusion in pirate crews challenged prevailing gender roles and added a layer of complexity to the maritime lore of the era.

The story of Henry Morgan

Henry Morgan, a British privateer turned pirate, rose to prominence as a cunning strategist and a master of raiding Spanish colonies. Born circa 1635 in Wales, Morgan's early life remains relatively obscure, with scant historical records providing details about his upbringing. His maritime career began as a privateer, authorized by English authorities to harass Spanish colonies and shipping interests in the Caribbean during a period marked by geopolitical tensions between England and Spain.

Sir Henry Morgan was a unique individual in the history of buccaneering. He started out life as an indentured servant on a plantation in Barbados, but worked himself up to become one of the most notorious buccaneers there ever was, receiving not only praise from his uncouth brethren of the coast, but also from his king, who rewarded him with the a knighthood and a lofty position. Morgan had connections running in all levels of society, from the lowest dregs, his mutinous crewmen, to the highest echelons of nobility. Together with his loyal friend and crony, Sir Thomas Modyford, he rampaged the Spanish territories in the Caribbean, his name inspiring fear along the vast coastline of New Spain and its dependencies. Through his network he was able to operate as a broker between criminals from various countries and a nation state, culminating in the biggest amphibious buccaneering raid ever in the Caribbean and the destruction of the once proud city of Panama, of which the ruins can still be visited today. The expected end for a man of his making would be at the gallows, or swinging from the gibbet in some port or another. But not for Sir Henry Morgan. His networking skills protected him, set him up with a respectable position after his career as a buccaneer, and provided him with the luxury of drinking himself to death in the comfort of his own home at the ripe age of 53; a fate most other pirates must have surely envied him for. His exploits in the plunder of Port Royal and the attack on Spanish merchant ships contributed to the era’s rich folklore and became the stuff of legends. Sabatini based the first part of the story of Blood on Henry Pitman, a surgeon who tended the wounded Monmouth rebels and was sentenced to death by Judge Jeffreys, but whose sentence was commuted to penal transportation to Barbados where he escaped and was captured by pirates. Unlike the fictional Blood, Pitman did not join them, and eventually made his way back to England where he wrote a popular account of his ordeal. For Blood's life as a buccaneer, Sabatini used several models, including Henry Morgan and the work of Alexandre Exquemelin, for historical details

The motivations for women to join pirate crews were as diverse as those of their male counterparts. Some, like Anne Bonny and Mary Read, disguised themselves as men to gain access to the adventurous and lucrative world of piracy. Their ability to conceal their gender allowed them to operate freely within the confines of a pirate ship, participating in raids, engaging in combat, and earning the respect of their fellow crew members. The reasons for adopting a pirate's life were multifaceted, often stemming from a desire for economic independence, a rejection of societal constraints, or a quest for personal freedom in an era when opportunities for women were limited.



Anne Bonny, as pictured in Charles Johnson’s 1724 book, A General History of the Robberies and Murders of the most notorious Pyrates. Anne Bonnya (disappeared after 28 November 1720) was a pirate who served under John Rackham. Amongst the few recorded female pirates in the Golden Age of Piracy, she has become one of the most recognized pirates of the era, as well as in the history of piracy in general.
The first biography of Bonny comes from Captain Charles Johnson's 1724 book A General History of the Pyrates. In August 1720, Bonny, Rackham, and another woman, Mary Read, together with about a dozen other pirate crewmembers, stole the sloop William, then at anchor in Nassau harbor, and put out to sea. The crew spent months in the West Indies attacking merchant ships. Bonny took part in piracy alongside the men, handing out gunpowder to fellow pirates, a job usually referred to as a powder monkey. On 5 September 1720, Governor Rogers put out a proclamation, later published in The Boston Gazette, demanding the arrest of Rackham and his associates. Among those named are Anne Bonny and Mary Read

Capt. Sir Henry Morgan, as pictured in Alexandre Exquemelin's Piratas de la America (1681) It is probable that in the early 1660s Morgan was active with a group of privateers led by Sir Christopher Myngs attacking Spanish cities and settlements in the Caribbean and Central America when England was at war with Spain. It is likely that in 1663 Morgan captained one of the ships in Myngs' fleet, and took part in the attack on Santiago de Cuba and the Sack of Campeche on the Yucatán Peninsula

Capt. Stede Bonnet flew a Jolly Roger flag {from A General History of the Pyrates 1724}
Stede Bonnet (c. 1688 – 10 December 1718) was an English pirate who was known as the Gentleman Pirate because he was a moderately wealthy landowner before turning to a life of crime. Bonnet was born into a wealthy English family on the island of Barbados, and inherited the family estate after his father's death in 1694. Despite his lack of sailing experience, Bonnet decided he should turn to piracy in the spring of 1717. He bought a sailing vessel, the Revenge, and traveled with his paid crew along the Eastern Seaboard of what is now the United States, capturing other vessels and burning other Barbadian ships.

Bonnet set sail for Nassau in the Bahamas, to the haven for pirates known as the "Republic of Pirates", but he was seriously wounded en route during an encounter with a Spanish warship. After arriving in Nassau, Bonnet met the infamous pirate Blackbeard. Incapable of leading his crew, Bonnet temporarily ceded his ship's command to Blackbeard. Before separating in December 1717, Blackbeard and Bonnet plundered and captured merchant ships along the East Coast. After Bonnet failed to capture the Protestant Caesar, his crew abandoned him to join Blackbeard aboard the Queen Anne's Revenge. Bonnet stayed on Blackbeard's ship as a guest, and did not command a crew again until summer 1718, when he was pardoned by North Carolina governor Charles Eden and received clearance to undertake privateering against Spanish shipping interests. Bonnet was tempted to resume his piracy but did not want to lose his pardon, so he adopted the alias "Captain Thomas" and changed his ship's name to Royal James. He had returned to piracy by July.

The brass barrel and the guns brass furniture are in superb condition, the steel lock is good, with working action, and bearing old surface russetting traces, typical of sea service guns, bearing the maker's name engraved of HALL. The walnut stock has a breathtaking patination, garnered over three centuries of dedicated polishing and care, and has the usual combat surface marks and light cracks thereon as to be expected.  read more

Code: 26307

A Superb & Most Scarce King George IIIrd Period Therapeutic Phlebotomy Mechanical Instrument, A Scarifyer Of Superb Quality by Ferguson of London. A Pistol Action To Instantaneously Release & Retract 12 Rotating Blades to Slice The Skin For Blood Letting

A fabulous Georgian collectable, mechanical scientific medical instrument, and a superb conversation piece.

Made in 1822 by Daniel Ferguson, 14 Castle Street, London

A phlebotomy scarificator (or scarifyer) is a historical 18th- and 19th-century spring-loaded medical device used to perform bloodletting by making multiple, uniform shallow cuts in the skin.

One of the best condition and beautiful examples, outside of the Science Museum, we have seen in the past 50 years

The Spring-Action Mechanism The device was armed by cocking a lever like a pistol hammer, and placed the instrument flat side down firmly against the patient's skin (typically on the back, arms, or legs).
When the practitioner pressed a trigger, a complex internal gear system released a series of rotating or snapping concealed blades—usually numbering around 12—which instantly slashed the flesh.

Practitioners used bloodletting under the belief that draining blood could re-balance the body's four fundamental "humors" and cure ailments ranging from fevers and infections to mental illness.

Compared to a single handheld lancet or knife, the multi-bladed scarificator was considered a more sophisticated and rapid way to draw a large volume of blood.

By the late 19th century, medical science advanced, proving that the ancient practice of bloodletting lacked therapeutic value for most conditions and often worsened patient outcomes, rendering the scarificator obsolete

See you tube film on their action, use and lack of efficacy from the Medical History Museum In Mebourne Australia

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTF0yGGjZEQ&t=100s  read more

Code: 26306

A Very Fine 1850's Original Bowie Knife With Superbly Etched Blade "Ask For Nothing But What is Right, Submit to Nothing Wrong" With a Large Central OK. with Gilt Embossed Leather Scabbard, Nickel Silver Mounts & Antler Grips

Overall in very nice condition, the scabbard grips and mounts are excellent for age, the blade has clear etching, but with surface finger print marks throughout. It appears there was a maker mark at the forte but now near impossible to view.

It emerged in early 19th-century American political rhetoric
"Ask for nothing but what is right, submit to nothing wrong"
It is a classic American political maxim famously declared by U.S. President Andrew Jackson.
Quoted as a guiding principle for foreign policy and personal integrity, symbolizing firm boundaries and moral defense.

The phrase was inscribed on 19th-century American patriotic artifacts, including, rare, etched-blade Bowie knives, manufactured during the Civil War era.

Later political figures, such as John F. Kennedy, invoked the sentiment during speeches to advocate for principled national stances and international fairness

The old traditional early Bowie knife was both a hunting knife and a tool. With it, one could clear a path, hack a sapling, dig a hole, or butcher game. In the siege of Bexar in 1835, Texans used Bowie knives to dig through roofs and walls and engage in hand-to-hand combat with the Mexicans. The knife was not designed or balanced for throwing.

Southerners replaced their sword canes with Bowie knives, and sought expert cutlers, North and South, to craft fine blades. The cutlers usually were surgical and dental instrument makers in large cities. Most signed their works; Peter Rose and John D. Chevalier were prominent in New York, English & Huber and Clarenbach & Herder in Philadelphia, Reinhardt in Baltimore, Thomas Lamb in Washington, Dufilho in New Orleans, Alfred Hunter in Newark, Marks and Rees in Cincinnati, Daniel Searles in Baton Rouge, and Rees Fitzpatrick in Natchez. Henry Schively also made improved versions in various styles. English cutlers in Sheffield, who had dominated the American cutlery market since colonial times, took advantage of the fascination with the Bowie knife. They capitalized on vivid reports by English journalists of murder and mayhem in America involving the weapon.

A trickle of Sheffield Bowie knives in the early 1830s developed into a flood before the Civil War. Bowie knife collections indicate that only about one in ten was American made. English cutlers applied clever motifs and blade etchings that appealed to American tastes and patriotic spirit. Examples include such labels as "American Bowie Knife," "Texas Ranger Knife," "Arkansas Toothpick," "Patriot's Self Defender," "Death to Abolition," "Death to Traitors," "Americans Never Surrender," "Rio Grande Camp Knife," and "I'm A Real Ripper." Handle and guard mountings also carried symbols and slogans with American appeal. Cutlers attached handles of ivory, pearl, tortoise shell, black and gray buffalo horn, India stag horn, and fine woods. Handle pommels of nickel silver featured horse heads, shells, and geometric designs. Manufacturers generally signed their blades and added such distinctive trademarks as I*XL, B4ANY, and XCEED. At the outbreak of the Mexican War in 1846, the Bowie knife was a popular weapon in Texas. Texas Rangers under Jack (John Coffee) Hayes and Ben McCulloch carried Bowie knives and Colt Dragoon pistols into battle. Knife blades stamped and etched with Mexican War motifs appeared. Zachary Taylor, mounted on Old Whitey, was a favorite subject. Bust etchings included "Old Zach," "General Taylor Never Surrenders," "Palo Alto," and "Buena Vista." Pommels featured a Taylor bust with a patriotic slogan.

In the late 1830s an alarmed public in several Southern states demanded stringent laws to curtail the increasing "rule of the Bowie knife." In January 1838 the Tennessee legislature passed "An Act to Suppress the Sale and Use of Bowie Knives and Arkansas Toothpicks in this State." However, the sale of the knives continued to accelerate, reaching a peak after the Civil War. During that war, crude Bowie knives were popular among Confederate soldiers. Some had large, wide blades, like those of artillery shorts words; most were unmarked. The Confederates considered the knife an essential accoutrements in the early months of the war, but as the conflict wore on the knife was replaced with the bayonet. The knives had hickory or hardwood handles and iron mounts, and were worn in heavy leather sheaths with throats and tips of tin, iron, or brass. Blades had scratch engravings and crude acid etchings, with such patriotic motifs as "Sunny South," "Confederate States Defender," or "Death to Yankees." A few Confederate Bowie knives were made by experienced cutlers and exhibited excellent workmanship. Union soldiers generally wore Sheffield or British made Bowie knives.

"In the history of American arms," wrote historian Harold L. Peterson (1958), "three weapons stand out above all the rest: the Kentucky rifle, the Colt's revolver, and the Bowie knife." Each became a part of the "great American Legend."


Overall 11 inches long in scabbard.  read more

Code: 26304

Rare WWI Winchester 1913, 1917 Dated Sword Bayonet With Black Leather Scabbard and Belt Mount, Made For The Rifle

Excellent plus, and an exceptional example with natural age wear. Bright polished steel blade and mounts excellent leather scabbard

The American U.S. Model 1913 dated 1917 Remington Sword-Bayonet , but made by the much rarer maker Winchester, in leather and steel scabbard with steel clip American military belt mount. It has an excellent bright polish blade. Known as a 'sleeper', in the collecting market, in that it was put into storage in 1946 and hasn't seen the light of day since, we have just acquired a super collection of bayonets all in stored condition since the end of the war.

This is a superb 1913- 1917 pattern bayonet marked to the blade with 1917 over W in a circle on one side, and US. These bayonets were originally manufactured by the U.S. in WWI and acquired by the British in WWII for use mainly by the Home Guard.

Pattern 1913/17. In excellent order with belt mount. Made by Winchester. The pattern of bayonet that was continually used in WW2 by the British Home Guard. With twin cuts in the wood grip added to differentiate for British forces that it was the American bayonet and not a British 1907 Wilkinson.

Originally the bayonet design was made for the British in September 1917 by Remington in the US as the 1913 Pattern intended to be issued with the P14 Rifle in .303 inch calibre. However, when America entered the war they changed production of the P14 rifle over to .30 inch calibre, at which point it became their M17 rifle. As the calibre change meant no alteration to the bayonet was required they basically took the unfinished/unshipped bayonets and made them American property by over-stamping the British marks with American marks, thus becoming M1917 bayonets.

The P14's principal combat use during World War I was as a sniper rifle, since it was found to be more accurate than the Short Magazine Lee–Enfield, either in standard issue form or with modified "fine-adjustment" aperture rearsights designated Pattern 1914 Mk I W (F) and Pattern 1914 Mk I* W (F) or, from April 1918, Aldis Pattern 1918 telescopic sights designated Pattern 1914 Mk I* W (T) (modified and telescopic sights were mainly used on Winchester-manufactured rifles, the Winchesters being thought to be of superior quality). During WW2 the rifle was also used again as a sniper rifle, the configuration being different from the World War I incarnation.

2 notches can be seen on the wooden handle as to distinguish it from SMLE bayonets as both rifles and blades were, though very similar incompatible with the other.

We have seen these scarce US bayonets in the States regularly sell for between $450 to $500  read more

Code: 26305

A Large Original Recovered Piece of a WW2 German Crashed Bomber's Alloy Wing Top Panel

Taken from a crashed German bomber, with original wing-top paint. Numerous rivet holes and rivet heads present. Typical german wing-top paint for a bomber aircraft. There is a partial printed word on the underside and with dilligent research it should be traceable to a specific bomber type.

Over the years we have had some amazing aeronautical archeological finds, and most have been identified by their approved, and gov. registered recoverers, yet this fine piece was placed in storage, and it’s plane I’d was mislaid, so the research for it has to start again if it is needed, but the price reflects that, and it may well reveal wonderful results.
14.75 inches x 22.0 inches. Just over 3.5 pounds weight.  read more

Code: 21589

A Superb Royal Naval, Brass Cannon Barrel Blunderbuss With Finest 'Juglans Regia' Walnut Stock Spring Bayonet, Elaborately Engraved All Brass Furniture, by Daykin of Nottingham

More photos to add tomorrow.

Manufactured circa 1780, this is an jolly rare example of a brass, cannon barreled blunderbuss, from the mid Georgian period, with a sprung loaded, quick-release snap-bayonet. Overall in superb condition for age.

A hugely popular gun used aboard naval ships by their captains in the era of King George IIIrd during the American Revolution and including the Napoleonic Wars, from the days of Admiral Nelson's Victory at Trafalgar. The rarest of the types used had a spring loaded bayonet that was incredibly effective for use after the blunderbuss had discharged its load against any 'boarders', and to effect the 'coup de gras' {the stroke of grace} to those that are still determinedly putting up a fight against the British ship's captain.

The three-stage round barrel has a flared muzzle and turned moldings. The sprung bayonet is fitted beneath, and the ramrod is housed to left side. The right side of the breech is struck with Tower private proof marks and the maker’s mark. The engraved action is signed "Daykin" and the barrel engraved " Daykin Nottingham" the blunderbuss has finest and elaborately engraved brass fittings, including the trigger guard. with a beautiful acorn finial.
The figured walnut buttstock it mounted with an engraved brass buttplate. The ramrod is in traditional naval service steel

The Blunderbuss (born of the Dutch word "Donderbus", appropriately meaning "Thunder Pipe" or "Thunder Gun") came to prominence in the early part of the 18th Century (1701-1800) and was more akin to the modern day shotgun than a "long gun" musket or heavy pistol of the time. As such, she excelled in close-in fighting, be it within the confines of naval warfare or walled nature of the urban environment, such as for protection of a Royal Mail coach, where her spread of shot could inflict maximum damage to targets at close ranges. Its manageable size, coupled with its spread shot, ensured some level of accuracy for even the novice user and its appearance was rather intimidating to those unfortunate enough to be staring down the business end, and the flashing bayonet nicely finished off those that survived the first salvo of shot! As with modern firearms, the Blunderbuss also made for an excellent security-minded weapon and soon found popularity amongst all matter of operators - military, civilian and, of course, criminal parties - by the middle of the 1700s. Even George Washington championed the Blunderbuss for Continental Army "Dragoon" units of the burgeoning American military as opposed to the carbine this being nothing more than a full-featured long gun of lesser overall length, proving suitable for horse-mounted handling. In fact, the short-form version of the Blunderbuss came to be known as the "Dragon", giving rise to the term "Dragoon" for such gun-wielding cavalrymen. Dragoons went on to form specialized units of mounted infantrymen within their respective armies during the end of the 17th Century and into the middle of the 18th Century - in a way, becoming an evolutionary step of the fabled mounted knight of the Middle Ages. Their use of Dragons soon gave way to the widely-accepted carbine musket. The Blunderbuss was also known as the "Blunderbess"

As with all our antique guns no license is required as they are all unrestricted antique collectables

The stock is superb with some edge bruising etc. around the lock.  read more

Code: 26303

A Rare Crimean War Issue, P1839 Tower of London Royal Naval Sea Service Pistol, In Spectacular, As issued Condition, With Original Finish, Blue and Stock Varnish. Positively and Profusely Stamped & Ordnance Marked, With Numerous Inspection Marks

VR Crown Tower lock with date 1855, stock maker marked by the ordnance contractor.
The new Pattern 1839 Sea Service Pistol, was a single shot percussion action sidearm with a captive ramrod, and was adopted for use by the Royal Navy from 1839. This pistol was nearly identical to the Pattern 1839 British Naval Coast Guard Pistol, but with two significant exceptions. First, the calibre was reduced to 26-Bore (about .57 caliber) and secondly, the pistol was mounted with an additional conventional belt hook rather than just the butt swivel. One other change was the elimination of the bolted safety behind the cock.

The list below was of the ships of the Royal Navy, issued with this pistol for use in the Crimean war, alongside their launch dates.
Arrow-class gunvessel
HMS Agamemnon (1852)
HMS Ajax (1809)
HMS Amphion (1846)
HMS Arrogant (1848)
HMS Ardent (1841)
HMS Basilisk (1848)
HMS Beagle (1854)
HMS Belleisle (1819)
HMS Blenheim (1813)
HMS Boscawen (1844)
HMS Britannia (1820)
HMS Calcutta (1831)
HMS Cornwallis (1813)
HMS Cossack (1854)
HMS Cruizer (1852)
HMS Cumberland (1842)
HMS Cyclops (1839)
HMS Dauntless (1847)
HMS Driver (1840)
HMS Duke of Wellington (1852)
HMS Edinburgh (1811)
HMS Euryalus (1853)
HMS Eurydice (1843)
HMS Exmouth (1854)
HMS Gorgon (1837)
HMS Hornet (1854)
HMS Imperieuse (1852)
HMS James Watt
HMS La Hogue
HMS Leander (1848)
HMS London (1840)
HMS Majestic (1853)
HMS Merlin (1838)
HMS Miranda (1851)
HMS Monarch (1832)
HMS Neptune (1832)
HMS Nile (1839)
HMS Odin (1846)
HMS Orion (1854)
HMS Pique (1834)
HMS Prince Regent (1823)
HMS Princess Royal (1853)
HMS Queen (1839)
HMS Rodney (1833)
HMS Royal George (1827)
HMS Sans Pareil (1851)
HMS St Jean d'Acre
HMS Tartar (1854)
HMS Tiger (1849)
HMS Valorous (1851)
HMS Virago (1842)
HMS Vulture (1843)

The 1839 Sea Service pistols, and WD contract Colt Navy revolvers, were also used in service by the Navy and Marines in the Second Opium War in China.The Colt revolvers for use by the officers, and the sailors and Marines, the single shot sea service pistols.
The Second Opium War, which brought English Camp's Royal Marines to Guangzhou, started after the Chinese seized a suspected pirate ship that was registered as a British merchant vessel, and the murder by the Chinese of a French priest. In retaliation, Britain made an alliance with France began destroying Chinese forts and eventually gathered an international force that would include British, French, and American combatants. This war would last for four years and climaxed with the burning and looting of the Summer Palace in Beijing, shortly after the Royal Marines arrived at English Camp. The Americans joined as allied combatants in the war, but didn’t make a formal alliance with the Anglo French force.  read more

Code: 26291

A Pair Of Finest Irish Silver Mounted Holster Pistols By John Govers Of Dame St. Dublin 1760. Finest Silver Cartouches Each One Engraved With The Original Owner, An Irish Duke's, Noble Crests, Of Irish Ducal Crowned Lions Passant, Set In Noble Shields

John Gover is recorded working in Dame Street, Dublin between 1745 and the year of his death in 1774. 18 bore.

Bearing upon their silver noble shield cartouches with grotesque masks at the shield base, are engraved noble crests of an Irish, ducal crowned lions passant, standing with one paw raised, over two heraldic bars.
A superb pair of silver grotesque mask butt caps, and all over silver fittings of florid designs including, pieced sideplates of stands of arms, including cannon, flags, cuirass armour, cannon balls and axes. Also very fine silver trigger guards with florid finials and fine engraving, and a pair of silver ramrod pipes containing their original horn tipped rammers.

Grotesque mask butt caps on antique flintlock pistols primarily feature human-like caricatures, mythological beasts, and stylized theatrical faces. These ornamental metal caps—commonly made of silver, brass, or German silver—were most popular on 17th- and 18th-century European and American firearms, especially Queen Anne and pocket pistols.
Exaggerated human features with wide-open mouths, prominent noses, and furrowed brows, often modeled after architectural gargoyles.
Designs inspired by Greco-Roman theatre masks, woodland spirits, or symbolic "death demons" meant to ward off evil

A pistol grotesque butt mask was one of the very few of its kind recovered from colonial excavation sites throughout Maryland, USA, is important not only for what it is, but for what it represents. While no other gun parts were recovered from Site 18CH354, the grotesque butt cap represents ideologies and traditions transferred from the old world to the new, and characterized how these ideas spread up through the Revolution (Gusler & Levin 1977).

These are truly a beautiful pair of finest status pistols from the mid 18th century, from the era of great turmoil across the Atlantic in the Americas, the Anglo Indian French War {aka the 7 years war in } and simply a joy to behold. The Metropolitan Museum in America have numerous similar wondrous examples in their collection, carried by the high ranking English and American officers {colonels and generals} in both the 1760’s war and the subsequent War of American Independence in the 1770’s to 80’s. The wars where George Washington first fought as British colonel against the French, then as General, the commander of the American forces, the Continental Army, against his former natural loyalties to the crown. The American Revolution, historically, was one of the most formative for world history until the 20th century world wars.
A war, that by defeating the British forces, by mostly former British colonists and crown subjects, along with elements of European emigres, and, the considerable assistance by the Britain’s greatest rivals at the time, France, creating, arguably, the most powerful nation of earth, in the much later 20th and 21st centuries. And, the other consequences, spawned the French Revolution, thus assisting Britain to expand the British Empire, and creating the worlds greatest power for the next 140 years until the 20th century, when America took its place, but only thanks to Germany, another of France’s great rivals.
The King of France expended so much gold from the French treasury, in loans and assistance to American revolutionaries, that it bankrupted the King, and naturally, France. Entirely, in many respects, due to the fact America, simply refused to pay back any financial contribution King Louis had made, and thus, creating the groundwork for his revolution, that cost him, and the nobility of France, their heads.
Ironically it was the French Kings ability to expend his vast resources against his government wishes, that lost him his realm, and it was the English kings inability to stop the war, as he was firmly against the British governments policy of the war, as he was a constructional monarch, thus head of state in name, but with no effective power to control policy or his governments wishes, that helped to create the most popular royal family in the world.
Another great irony, was, all the blame by America was heaped upon the British King George IIIrd, {the so-called, king of tyranny} to enable the circumstances of the war, but, he was one of the few men of ‘power’ in Britain that supported their situation, of course, behind the scenes so to speak, but, could do nothing about it. He was in reality, one of the kindest of men to have every ruled {in name only} a great nation, known by his beloved subjects as ‘Farmer George’, due to his passion of working hand in hand with his estate labourers, who he regarded as friends, digging ditches and tending animals.
Thus the French Kings action cost him his families throne, and lives, and the British Kings lack of action, went on the create the worlds greatest empire of the 19th and early 20th century. A lesson on the advantages of constitutional monarchies no doubt.
The previous few paragraphs, if you kindly forgive our wandering narrative, show, very briefly, and concisely of course, and naturally we had to leave out a few other minor historical events {around sixty ‘lesser’ wars, but whose counting} that just how intriguing and fundamental history truly is to all future events. The ultimate demonstration of ‘actions and consequences’ and what the studying of history can truly reveal to the curious mind. All current presidents and prime ministers, please take note!

See the most interesting and illuminating article of the pistol grotesque butt cap mask of the early 18th century

https://apps.jefpat.maryland.gov/curatorschoice/CCIssues/2010-11.aspx

Each pistol is 14 inches long overall with barrels of 8 1/4 inches overall condition is very good with usual commensurate age wear and small areas of dings and nicks to the walnut stocks around the locks.  read more

Code: 26295

A Magnificent Pair of 18th Century London, Silver Mounted Long Holster Pistols Circa 1720, By George Halfhide of The Minories London. Elected Master of the London Gunmakers Company in 1736

A wondrous pair of finest English silver mounted, 25 bore long barrelled, holster or horse pistols, by one of the great London makers of early Georgian England.

George Halfhide was a master gunsmith. and accordingly held in most high esteem, to such an extent, he was elected master of the gunmakers company in 1737. A highly prestigious position, carrying much responsibility and enormous respect within the trade.

He is renowned for making the finest pistols for the nobility and gentry of society in the earliest Georgian period of the 1700s. His silver mounts were finest quality for the time, and his carving and wood crafting always exemplary. The pistols are mounted with silver grotesque butt caps of extraordinary beauty.

These are an exceptional pair of such silver mounted pistols and are in fine condition for their age. with the usual wear commensurate for their date.

Long barrel holster pistols were in much great demand and in their day were extraordinary expensive. They could be carried in saddle mounted buckets (the earliest name for holsters) when mounted on horseback.

Made before the days of duelling pistols, but is from their size and design that pairs of cased duelling pistols evolved into later society in Georgian England.

Grotesque mask butt caps on antique flintlock and wheellock pistols primarily feature human-like caricatures, mythological beasts, and stylized theatrical faces. These ornamental metal caps—commonly made of silver, brass, or German silver—were most popular on 17th- and 18th-century European and American firearms, especially Queen Anne and pocket pistols.
Exaggerated human features with wide-open mouths, prominent noses, and furrowed brows, often modeled after architectural gargoyles.
Designs inspired by Greco-Roman theatre masks, woodland spirits, or symbolic "death demons" meant to ward off evil

A pistol grotesque butt mask was one of the very few of its kind recovered from colonial excavation sites throughout Maryland, USA, is important not only for what it is, but for what it represents. While no other gun parts were recovered from Site 18CH354, the grotesque butt cap represents ideologies and traditions transferred from the old world to the new, and characterized how these ideas spread up through the Revolution (Gusler & Levin 1977).

See the most interesting and illuminating article of the pistol grotesque butt cap mask of the early 18th century

https://apps.jefpat.maryland.gov/curatorschoice/CCIssues/2010-11.aspx

Overall 17 3/4 inches long, 11 1/4 inch barrels



One hammer is slightly out of true with a hairline, one forestock has an old contemporary split repair  read more

Code: 26302

A Superb Pair of 18th Century Naval Ship Captain's Pistols, Dated 1783, with All Brass Frames and Barrels and Hallmarked Silver Buttcaps. By Master Gunsmith John Rea of London

American revolutionary war period and used into the Napoleonic Wars.
John Rea was an 18th-century London gunsmith who operated and produced fine antique firearms, notably Royal Navy form pistols and brass cannon-barrel blunderbusses.

Boxlock actions with sliding safeties, very tight and crisp strong actions. Shield form butt cartouches, with solid silver buttcaps.

The quality of these pistols is beyond improvement, as is their condition.

He was active in London from 1782 to 1793.
Associated with classic British maritime personal defense arms of the Georgian era.

Noted for producing "cannon mouth" pattern brass-barreled blunderbusses featuring Tower proof marks and fine walnut stocks.

Utilized high-grade brass furniture, finely engraved trigger guards, and robust flintlock mechanisms suited for close-quarters naval defense actions  read more

Code: 26301