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The barrels of each gun are fitted to a beautifully brushed bright semi-round body sidelock
ejector action with hand detachable lockplates displaying extensive fully carved deep relief
floral scroll engraving incorporating numerous small flowers with gold inlaid pistils at their
centers and surrounding “J. Purdey & Sons” signatures on either side and “J. Purdey & Sons/
London” on the underside before continuing onto the toplever, triggerguard, and both
tangs, the bottom of which displays the serial number in deep relief. Both guns also display
a trio of relief game scenes set directly over the scrollwork giving a highly attractive flow
to the pieces not typically scene on in firearms engraving. On gun “1” (A), the left lockplate
shows a quartet of pheasant cocks in flight, the right lockplate has five grouse, four of whom
are standing and one alighting, and the underside shows five black grouse with one in flight
and a pair posturing at the foreground. Gun “2” (B) shows five standing partridge on the left
lockplate, six quail on the underside with four standing and two in flight, and five standing
red grouse on the right lockplate. The engraving is signed on the triggerplate to the right
of the trigger “Ph. Grifnee” for world renowned Master Engraver Philippe Grifnee, one of the
most highly sought after engravers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries and one of the
finest to ever put a graver to steel. Both guns feature gold centerlined cocking indicators on
the lockplates, a single non-selective trigger, a right hand rolled triggerguard, and a tang
mounted automatic safety with a bird’s head relief engraved on the slide.