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LOT 1010
Stunning, Factory Exhibition Engraved and Gold Inlaid Winchester
Deluxe Model 1897 Slide Action Shotgun with Gold Inlaid
Monogram and Matching Extra Barrel and Factory Letter - Serial no.
C189008, 12 gauge, 30 inch round bbl., blue/gold finish, deluxe walnut
stock. This magnificent Winchester Model 1897 is truly in a league of its
own as one of the most extravagant “highly finished” Winchester Model
1897 shotguns extant. The included factory letter lists the serial number
as applied on November 17, 1902, and the shipping date as January 30th,
1903, and confirms the factory engraving, gold inlay, “W.F.S.” monogram on
the receiver, takedown configuration, 30 inch barrel, 12 gauge chambering
“Fancy, Checkered stock, Full pistol grip”, and the extra barrel. The letter
also lists the gun as returned and repaired on September 26th, 1903, and
again on November 18th, 1905. While not explicitly documented, the high
grade engraving and gold inlay combined with the multiple return dates
is indicative of this incredible shotgun being used as a factory exhibition
piece. Given the dates, it may have originally been produced for the
Louisiana Purchase Exposition which was initially scheduled to take place
in 1903 but was rescheduled for April to December 1904, and the shotgun
certainly may have been displayed as part of the event. There were other
major exhibitions in 1903, including the Fifth National Industrial Exhibition
in Osaka, Japan, which ran from March to July of 1903 and was the first of
Japan’s exhibitions to include foreign countries, including representatives
from the United States. The November 1905 return date suggests it was
displayed at the Liege International Exposition which ran from April 27 to
November 6, 1905.