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LOT 1053
Incredible Kentucky Rifle Association Best Relief Carved Rifle Award Winning Golden Age
Flintlock American Long Rifle Attributed to Leonard Reedy with Fine Engraving, Silver Inlays, and
Stunning Relief Carved Stock - NSN, 45 cal., 43 3/4 inch octagon bbl., brown finish, relief carved maple stock. Leonard
Reedy (1776-1837) is among the most respected master riflemakers from the “Golden Age” and produced excellently built
rifles with beautiful carving and engraving. As a testament to Reedy’s artistry, one of his rifles is in the Metropolitan Museum of
Art’s Gallery 372. Reedy apprenticed under John Bonewitz and followed his master when he moved to Pine Grove, Pennsylvania, in 1809,
and Reedy later relocated to Gratz, Pennsylvania. This stunning rifle is very similar to the example shown by the Kentucky Rifle Foundation on
their page for Reedy and also has similarities with other Reedy rifles as well as those by Bonewitz and Andrew Figthorn. The carving details are very
similar to the Reedy examples in Joe Kindig Jr.’s classic “Thoughts on the Kentucky Rifle in Its Golden Age” on pages 218-224, and the rifle overall is rather
similar to the rifle on page 108 of “Kentucky Rifles & Pistols, 1750-1850” by Johnston. It is accompanied by a Kentucky Rifle Association 2006 Best Relief Carved Rifle
award. The rifle has a silver blade front sight with a dovetailed brass base, dovetailed notch rear sight, hooked breech, a standing breech with a “dished” rear sight and
light engraving, unmarked lock, double set triggers (adjustment screw absent), four barrel keys without escutcheons, silver wrist and cheekpiece inlays (latter pierced and
engraved in the shape of a distelfink), brass buttplate five flats and a wedding band on the heel finial, patchbox release on the buttplate behind the patchbox lid, beautifully scroll engraved patchbox with three screws per side plate and finial, two-screw toe plate with rounded finial and light track line border, and full-length curly maple stock with Roman nose profile, incised double line molding terminating in scrolls along the forend, nicely shaped flats, raised relief scroll and checkered patterns at the top of the wrist, incised double line molding along the bottom of the butt, and stunning combination of incised and raised relief carved scroll engraving on the butt.