Antiques
Marston 3-Barrel Selectable Pocket Derringer
Lot 1173 in the September 2019 RIA auction. William Marston was born in the UK in 1822 and emigrated to the US in the 1830s with his father, who was a gun smith. William became […]
Antiques
Antiques
Morse Carbine: If the Army Says No, Sell it Commercially!
This carbine is lot #3208 in the upcoming Rock Island May 2019 auction. George Morse was one of the most significant American inventors in the development of modern ammunition. In 1856 he received a patent […]
Antiques
WW Marston Breechloading Pistol and Leather-Base Cartridge
RIA’s catalog page for this pistol William Walker Marston was born in 1822, and would spend his career as a gunsmith and gunmaker in New York City. He produced a wide variety of firearms, including […]
Antiques
Maltese Flintlocks: Girard Mle 1733 Pistols of the Order of St. John
The Order of St John – the Knights of Malta – began as an order to protect Christian pilgrims on the road to Jerusalem, but transformed into an organization dedicated to corsairing in the Mediterranean […]
Antiques
King Louis XV’s Magnificent Engraved Lorenzoni Rifle
This Lorenzoni-pattern rifle was presented to King Louis XV of France in the mid 1700s, and is an exquisite example of firearms deemed suitable for royalty at the height of the European kings. It is […]
Antiques
Le Petit Protector Ring Pistol: A Modern Antique
Le Petit Protector is a ring pistol, made in both 5 shot/5mm and 6 shot/4mm pinfire variations, as well as a smaller version holding 7 rounds of 2mm pinfire, called the “Femme Fatale”. They are […]
Antiques
Miller Pill-Lock Revolving Rifle
John and James Miller of Rochester New York designed and built this rifle, which is an example of an intermediate revolving firearm. It comes after the flintlock Collier guns, but before Sam Colt’s Paterson demonstrated […]
Antiques
Massive Wheellock Hand Mortars at James D Julia
These wheellock hand mortars, or katzenkopf, are an example of a weapon made and used for everything from front line military application to civilian parades to simple decoration. The pair we are looking at today […]
Antiques
Wheellock 101: History and Shooting (Video)
The wheel lock was one of the first types of early gun or firearm, developed as an alternative to the simple but problematic matchlock musket. The wheellock uses an iron pyrite set against a spinning […]
Antiques
Mannlicher Model 1894 Pistols
The Mannlicher Model 1894 was one of the first successful semiauto pistol designs, and used a very unusual blow forward action. Instead of having a moving slide, the bullet would actually pull the barrel forward […]