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Highly Desirable Engraved
and Gold and Platinum Inlaid
Flintlock Dueling Pistols by
Louis-Marin Gosset
Outstanding Documented
Antique Winchester Model
1886 Lever Action Rifle in
Desirable .45-70 Caliber with
Factory Letter
LOT 268
LOT 28
Historic significance and celebrity appeal are far from the only
factors driving growth in the upper echelon of arms collecting.
Condition, rarity, and exceptional artistry helped four of Rock
Island Auction Company’s top performers attain seven-figure
status. All three traits are evident in the previously mentioned
Millikin Dragoon as well as a Winchester Model 1886 Express
rifle engraved by master John Ulrich which earned $1.18 million
at Rock Island Auction Company in 2018. One of our seven-figure
runner-ups, a solid silver Winchester Model 1866, exceeded its
estimate by more than 50 percent as it gaveled for $977,500 in
December of 2021, a result achieved in large part due to the firearm’s
spectacular engraving from master artisan Louis D. Nimschke.
Persistent high risers can be found within numerous segments
of the fine arms field. Antique Colts and Winchesters, two 19th-
century collecting cornerstones, jointly account for 39 of Rock
Island Auction’s 50 most expensive firearms. Exhibition-grade
flintlocks and wheellocks are another genre with no lack of
demand. While items tied to influential leaders achieve the highest
results, recently exampled by a garniture of arms presented to
Napoleon Bonaparte that gaveled for $2.88 million at Rock Island
Auction Company, many other instances of the genre have earned
impressive prices solely due to their exceptional artistic merit.
New records have been set in nearly every corner of arms
collecting, and the sector’s extensive overlap with popular
disciplines such as Western art, celebrity memorabilia, the
decorative arts field, and historic military collecting has helped fuel
an impressive uptrend in this thriving alternative asset class. As
demand continues to grow, anyone seeking to add collectibles to
their portfolio would be wise to consider the fine firearms market,
where the patient investor will discover a high ceiling, a wealth
of opportunity, and some of the finest treasures money can buy.
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