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LOT 1390
Rare and Attractive German Mauser Model 1906/08 Semi-Automatic Pistol, Serial Number “39”, with
Extra Magazine - Serial no. 39, 9 mm cal., 4 inch part octagon bbl., blue finish, walnut grips. Conceived in
the early 1900s and manufactured in unknown but limited quantities (per Mauser Rifles and Pistols by Smith,
page 191), the 1906/08 was essentially a combination of the form factor of the famous Mauser Broomhandle
semi-automatic pistol with the short recoil mechanism of the 1906/08 rifle. Internally a pair of swinging
blocking locks (described as “flanges” or “check valves” in some sources) are installed in a set of tracks in the
frame, which physically hold the bolt in the closed and locked position until the receiver travels back a short
distance. Further, the design solved what was seen internally as the critical fault of the Broomhandle design,
the lack of a detachable magazine, which was seen as putting it behind contemporaries like the Luger and
Browning’s designs. Not content to just catch up, they took what they saw was the next step, a mechanism
that would lock open automatically on an empty chamber and then slam the bolt home automatically when a
new magazine was introduced, removing the need to manually manipulate a slide, toggle, or switch to resume
firing. While the 1906/08 itself would not get traction, some of the features would be refined and integrated
into later Mauser handgun designs, with the Mauser HSc using a very similar catch/release mechanism for the
slide. Manufactured with fixed sights, the barrel marked “WAFFENFABRIK/MAUSER/OBERNDORF A.N.” along the
chamber flats and “8,85 9,12. 250. (illegible, possibly 3)” on the underside. A niter blue extractor, trigger, and
safety components are installed, with engine turning on top of the locking blocks, a detachable straw finished
guide track for the blocks, and a checkered wraparound grip. Two magazines are included, one long and one
short, both numbered “64”, with other components (including the bolt, extractor, locking block, and striker
housing) numbered to match the receiver.
CONDITION: Very good with 85% plus original blue, with minor scuffs on the rear of the frame, light dings and
handling marks, and some bright edge wear. Strong and fiery niter blue is present on the small parts, with the
guide block retaining attractive straw color. The grip is also very good, with a few scratches and dings as well as
crisp checkering. Mechanically excellent. Rarely seen in any condition, the 1906/08 is essentially the evolution
of the Broomhandle as well as a sort of “missing link” between it and Mauser’s later handguns, and could be a
showcase piece in either sort of collection.
Provenance: The Collection of Clive Cussler.
Estimate: 27,500 - 42,500