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LOT 260
Very Fine & Rare Engraved Westley Richards & Co. 12 Bore Double Barrel Bar-In- Wood Toplever Big Game Hammer Rifle with Case - Serial no. 12205, 12 Bore cal., 28 inch
bbl., brown/casehardened/blue finish, walnut stock. Manufactured in circa 1872. Browned damascus
steel rifled barrels with partially matted rib signed “PATENT/WESTLEY RICHARDS 170 NEW BOND ST LONDON/WHITWORTH PATENT” with doll’s-head
extension, single front bead and five leaf notched rear sight graduated from “50” to “250” yards. Finely scroll engraved standing breech with removable
breech face inserts. Locks and action each finely scroll engraved and signed “WESTLEY RICHARDS”, sculpted dolphin hammers, each with blued safety catch. Blued trigger guard engraved
with a running wild boar game scene and engraved with the serial number “12205”, and blued top lever. Well figured checkered pistol grip stock with raised comb, crab-joint forend, horn
forend tip, casehardened steel grip cap, silver oval escutcheon, sling eyelets, and engraved blued steel buttplate. With Birmingham black powder proof marks. Weight 10 lbs. 10 oz. The
leather bound partitioned case features the name “A.W. HILL” on the exterior of the lid and paper labels (sighting target numbered to gun, cleaning instructions, Westley Richards trade label and
instructions) on the interior of the lid. Accessories include a brass 12 bore bullet mold and bore snake.
CONDITION: Very good. The barrels retain 98% rebrowned finish with bold Damascus pattern, minor muzzle rub and a storage scratch to the muzzle of the left barrel, signatures slightly softened. Bright shiny Whitworth patent rifling. Action, locks and furniture retaining traces of original faded casehardened finish. Fine engraving mostly crisp throughout, slightly flattened on the trigger guard. Well figured pistol grip stock with well-defined checkering, some old storage and handling marks, forearm with repaired crack to crab-joint. Mechanically excellent. The case is very good showing minor handling/storage marks, typical high spot wear on the lining, and nearly all of the labels remaining.
Provenance: The Malcolm King Collection.
Estimate: 4,000 - 6,000
LOT 261
Very Fine & Rare W.W. Greener Double Barrel Rotary Underlever
Big Game Hammer Rifle - Serial no. 8719, 12 Bore cal., 26 inch bbl., brown/ casehardened finish, walnut stock. The firm of W.W. Greener were one of the most innovative of the 19th century British gunmakers, this particular rifl
system whereby the sculptured low profile hammers retract the firing pins as they are pulled back from the fired position allowing easy opening of the action without the need for rebounding lock mechanisms. The barrels are of Damascus steel with a bold twist
pattern and are rifled with eleven shallow grooves and engraved with a band of fine running foliage at the breech ends. The raised rib is engraved with two panels of waved lines each bordered top and bottom with
further bands of fine running foliage and providing a full length matted coverage. A signature panel towards the breech end is signed “W.W. GREENER, ST. MARY’S WORKS, BIRMINGHAM, LAMINATED STEEL” and sighting is provided by a blued rear sight of three
folding leaves engraved en suite with the matted panels, each being inlaid with a platinum center line, and a blued blade front sight. Casehardened action and non-rebounding
back action locks are each engraved with double border lines and with sprays of foliage or rosettes around the screws. The action is engraved “SIGHTED WITH 4 DRAMS OF POWDER”
on the right side, and the locks are each signed “W.W. GREENER”. Well figured semi-pistol grip stock with checkered grip and forearm. Iron mounts engraved with double border lines en
suite with the action and locks, the buttplate with large checkered panel, and sling eyes to the underside of the butt and barrels. The underside of the barrels and action flats struck with
Birmingham black powder proof marks.
CONDITION: Barrels retaining 90% older rebrowned finish with minor rubbing to the finish at the muzzles and mid-point of the barrels, some minor storage blemishes and scratches to the outer edges of the tubes. The signature on the rib is very slightly softened. The action retaining 40% faded original casehardened finish with the locks retaining 20% original finish mostly in the sheltered areas around the hammers. The stock has minor handling and storage marks. The stock is likely to be an expert replacement. Mechanically excellent. A fine example of a classic double barrel bore-gauge rifle.
Provenance: The Malcolm King Collection.
e incorporating a
256 Estimate: 4,000 - 6,000