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LOT 1280
Exceptional and Exceedingly Rare Finely Engraved, Gilded, and Relief Carved Nicolas Noel Boutet Versailles
Manufactory Turnover Rifled Flintlock Sporting Carbine - Serial no. 59, 38 Bore cal., 23 1/4 inch semi-octagon bbl., blue/
gold/bright finish, walnut stock. This lavish turnover sporting carbine dates to c. 1805 shortly after Napoleon Bonaparte
seized power as emperor and originates from the renowned Versailles Manufactory led by Nicolas Noel Boutet (1761-1833),
unquestionably one of the finest firearms artisans the world has ever known. Boutet became gunmaker in ordinary to King Louis
XVI in 1788 shortly before the French Revolution and was appointed the “directeur-artiste” of the Versailles Arms Manufactory
in 1792, the same year the king was arrested. By the time Napoleon had seized power as emperor, Boutet had assembled a
team composed of many of the best artisans in Europe. They produced both regulation arms for Napoleon’s massive armies and
some of the most incredible “de luxe” firearms the world has ever seen. Their “Empire Style” designs often feature motifs whose
inspiration was drawn from ancient Greco-Roman and Egyptian art following Napoleon’s conquests in Italy and Egypt. Many of
the finest guns from Versailles under Boutet’s leadership and were commissioned by Napoleon as presentation pieces for his
officers, political allies, foreign dignitaries, and his family as well as extraordinary arms for the emperor’s own use.
Exceptional and Exceedingly Rare Finely Engraved, Gilded, and Relief Carved Nicolas Noel Boutet Versailles Manufactory Turnover Rifled Flintlock Sporting Carbine