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LOT 1019
Extremely
Scarce Conrad
F. Ulrich Factory
No. 5-4 Game
Panel Scene Master
Engraved, Special
Order Three-Barrel Set Marlin Deluxe Model 1893
Lightweight Lever Action Takedown Short Rifle with
Highly Desirable 18 Inch Barrels - Serial no. 200129, 25-36
Marlin cal., 18 inch part octagon bbl., blue/casehardened
finish, walnut stock. Manufactured in 1900, this is an incredible
example of a special ordered, factory panel scene engraved,
Marlin deluxe Model 1893 short rifle, which exemplifies the
outstanding craftsmanship and artistry the Marlin factory was producing
towards the end of the 19th century and into the 20th century. The vast
majority of the fantastic artistry produced by the Marlin factory around the turn of the
century can be credited to Master Engraver Conrad F. Ulrich Jr., who is noted as having
engraved essentially all of the company’s high-art firearms from around 1881, when
he was hired on as master engraver,
until 1910. Ulrich had studied under the
legendary Master Engraver Gustave Young at Colt during the 1860s, who is cited as one
of the founding fathers of the American style of engraving alongside Louis D. Nimschke.
Around 1869, Ulrich and his two brothers moved to New Haven, Connecticut, where
they primarily did engraving work for Winchester, until Marlin hired Conrad as their
factory master in 1881. From then on, Ulrich continued to improve and perfect his style,
creating a fairly unique style that was both distinctly Marlin and decidedly American. The
result of this was some of the finest pieces of American firearms art during the period
being produced by the company which John Mahlon Marlin had started in 1863.
In many ways, the story of the Marlin Firearms Company embodies that of America
itself, being one of resilience, innovation, courage, and determination. At the age of 18,
John Mahlon Marlin (1836-1901) entered an apprenticeship at the American Machine
Works in Connecticut, and by 1863, he was listed in the New Haven directories as a pistol
maker. Initially, Marlin was producing small, single-shot derringer pistols, moving into
producing revolvers by the 1870s, and by around 1875, adding the Ballard single-shot
rifle to his lineup. By 1879, Marlin had begun to dabble in repeating rifles, and though
these designs were never produced for commercial sale, they set him on a collision
coarse with one of the powerhouses of 19th century American industry, the Winchester
Repeating Arms Company.
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