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still considered to be some of the finest examples of Purdey guns as works of art. Their rarity means that
they have always had something of a collector’s following, and therefore are generally a source of interest when they do reappear on the market.” In the third article he also notes, “Keane’s will, combined with his accounts, leaves one rifle unaccounted for. No. 9568, the 60-bore double rifle, was never mentioned again after its purchase in 1884, and was apparently not included in the bequest to the Prince of Wales in 1901. Although it may be coincidental, it was also the only one not to be purchased under the ‘Separate Account’.” Thus, this incredible double rifle remains one of the few extravagant Purdey sporting guns owned by Keane that are not currently part of the Royal Gunroom at Sandringham.
In addition to being part of the gold medal winning display by Purdey in 1878, the included 2004 article “Guns of the Concours: Purdey Double Rifle No. 9568” by Roger Sanger and Steve Helsley discusses this extraordinary Purdey double rifle from the Norman R. Blank Collection receiving the Best in Show award at the first Gold Medal Concours d’Elegance of Fine Guns in January 2001. They note that the judges were in rare unanimous agreement that this rifle was the “first best” at the show “despite the fact that the collectors had brought out their best for display and competition.” They note the 7th Gold Medal Concours in April 2004 was dedicated to Blank’s memory and that at subsequent shows, the top gun would receive the Norman R. Blank Best in Show Award. Some of the historical details reported in the 2004 article are incorrect; for those details, please see Harlow’s articles in “The Vintage Gun Journal” in January-March of 2022 and available on their website.
CONDITION: Exceptionally fine overall. 95% plus of the period factory refurbished finish remains on the barrels which display a few small patches of loss and staining. The remaining metal exhibits beautiful French gray, exceptionally crisp designs, and minor patination. The wood is equally fine overall with stunning figure on the butt, crisp checkering, and minimal light handling and storage marks and spots. Mechanically excellent. The case and outer are very good with mild age and storage related wear. The accessories, some absent, are generally very fine with minimal wear from age. This is an incredibly rare opportunity
to acquire a historically and artistically significant J. Purdey & Sons double rifle exhibited in Purdey’s award winning display at the Exposition Universelle in
Paris in 1878 and the Sydney International Exhibition in 1879 and subsequently purchased by the 3rd Baron Keane. The remainder of Baron Keane’s incredible Purdey exhibition guns remain today in the gunroom at Sandringham House, one of King Charles III’s two privately owned residences which the Royal Family continues to use as a sporting and country estate.
Provenance: The Baron Keane Collection; J.D. “Buck” Buchanan; The Dr. Earl J. Thee Collection; The Norman R. Blank Collection.
Estimate: 65,000 - 95,000 361
He purchased No. 9568 first, in July 1884 for £110, followed by No. 9563 in December 1885 for £93 4s 6d. Given their relative age, and the distances they had traveled, he received remarkably little discount from the prices they first had in 1878. One hundred and forty-three years after the exhibition, these guns are