Under the Hammer
David Williams' Top Picks from Fine Arms & Armour
Ahead of our Knightsbridge auction on 23rd September, Director of the Bonhams Arms, Armour and Sporting Guns Department, David Williams, shares his top picks coming up for sale.
Antique firearms have been collected since around the 17th century when Louis XIII (1601-1643) is believed to have become the first great collector of longarms and pistols. Since then, many others have developed an interest in this area of the applied arts.
The greatest private collection of antique firearms was without doubt assembled by W. Keith Neal during the 20th century (1905-1990). Following his death, the collection was dispersed in a series of auction sales between 1995 and 2005. These sales confirmed the strength of interest in this area of collecting which had experienced a renaissance since the end of WWII, when antique weapons of all sorts were plentiful, and even the finest could be bought for a few pounds.
Condition, rarity and provenance are the three key ingredients to strive for when building a collection. At Bonhams, we are proud to have been entrusted with offering for sale a remarkable group of important British firearms this September that exemplifies these three ingredients and includes examples of the gunmaker’s art by some of the greatest makers including John and Joseph Manton, Durs and Joseph Egg and Robert Wogdon, among others. Many also enjoy the cachet of once being part of the W. Keith Neal Collection.
David Williams, Director of the Bonhams Arms, Armour and Sporting Guns Department.
David Williams, Director of the Bonhams Arms, Armour and Sporting Guns Department.
Lot 314
A Cased Pair of 18-Bore Forsyth Patent Siding Primer Officer’s Pistols
Lot 314: A Cased Pair of 18-Bore Forsyth Patent Siding Primer Officer’s Pistols, Forsyth & Co. Patent Gun Makers, London, nos. 1153 and 1154, circa 1816, £20,000-30,000
Lot 314: A Cased Pair of 18-Bore Forsyth Patent Siding Primer Officer’s Pistols, Forsyth & Co. Patent Gun Makers, London, nos. 1153 and 1154, circa 1816, £20,000-30,000
These pistols, which once formed part of the aforementioned W. Keith Neal Collection, are truly remarkable for their rarity and incorporate one of the earliest forms of percussion ignition. The Reverend Alexander Forsyth began his research into the use of fulminates of mercury in 1805 and patented his scent-bottle lock in 1807. These pistols are brilliant examples of the improved sliding primer, retaining nearly all their original finish.
Lot 315
A Cased Pair of 54-Bore Percussion Rifled Target or Duelling Pistols
Lot 315. A Cased Pair of 54-Bore Percussion Rifled Target or Duelling Pistols, by James Purdey, 314 1/2 Oxford Street, London, nos. 2039 and 2040 for 1831, £15,000-20,000
Lot 315. A Cased Pair of 54-Bore Percussion Rifled Target or Duelling Pistols, by James Purdey, 314 1/2 Oxford Street, London, nos. 2039 and 2040 for 1831, £15,000-20,000
These duelling pistols were made by James Purdey (1784-1863), arguably the most famous name in English gun making history. James Purdey & Sons still build modern sporting guns today at Audley House in London’s West End. They were made at a time when duelling was still being used as a means of settling disputes and the interest in practising target shooting was extremely popular among society’s higher echelons. They have survived in fantastic condition and were part of the Dr Robert Rabett Collection sold by Bonhams in 2011.
Lot 357
A Cased 17-Bore Flintlock Over-and-Under Travelling or Officer's Pistol
Lot 357. A Cased 17-Bore Flintlock Over-and-Under Travelling or Officer’s Pistol with Attachable Shoulder-Stock, by Joseph Egg, London, no. 2638, circa 1820 , £8,000-10,000
Lot 357. A Cased 17-Bore Flintlock Over-and-Under Travelling or Officer’s Pistol with Attachable Shoulder-Stock, by Joseph Egg, London, no. 2638, circa 1820 , £8,000-10,000
Surviving with its original case and accessories, this stunning pistol has barrels in the very rare over-and-under format and is intended to be converted into a carbine by the attachment of the shoulder-stock. The pistol retains nearly all its original finish and is enhanced by the quality of the foliate engraved decoration on its trigger-guard and butt-cap.
Lot 358
A Cased 90-Bore Flintlock Silver-Mounted Single-Trigger Over-and-Under Pocket Pistol
Lot 358. A Cased 90-Bore Flintlock Silver-Mounted Single-Trigger Over-and-Under Pocket Pistol, by Joseph Egg of London, London Silver Hallmarks for 1814, £8,000-10,000
Lot 358. A Cased 90-Bore Flintlock Silver-Mounted Single-Trigger Over-and-Under Pocket Pistol, by Joseph Egg of London, London Silver Hallmarks for 1814, £8,000-10,000
This pistol, affectionately referred to as a ‘baby Egg’ by collectors due to its small size, was intended as a personal protection weapon. It was stored and transported in its case and could also have been carried in the pocket of an overcoat. At the time of its manufacture it would have been considered the very finest product of its type and examples remain highly desirable by collectors today.
Lot 359
A Cased Pair of 22-Bore Flintlock Single-Trigger Over-and-Under Pistols
Lot 359. A Cased Pair of 22-Bore Flintlock Single-Trigger Over-and-Under Pistols, by John Manton, London, nos. 4205 and 4206 for 1804, £10,000-15,000
Lot 359. A Cased Pair of 22-Bore Flintlock Single-Trigger Over-and-Under Pistols, by John Manton, London, nos. 4205 and 4206 for 1804, £10,000-15,000
John Manton (1752-1834) and his brother Joseph (1766-1835) are considered among the most respected of the early gunmakers. Many subsequent makers, including James Purdey, worked as their apprentices. These pistols, which survive in their original case with accessories, were once in the collection of Field Marshall Sir Francis Festing, GCB, KBE, DSO, DL. He was a friend of W. Keith Neal and would almost certainly have acquired these pistols from him.
Lot 360
A Cased Pair of 40-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols
Lot 360. A Cased Pair of 40-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols, by Joseph Manton, London, no. 4261 for 1807, £15,000-18,000
Lot 360. A Cased Pair of 40-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols, by Joseph Manton, London, no. 4261 for 1807, £15,000-18,000
An example of a classic pair of flintlock duelling pistols by Joseph Manton himself. Many collectors of antique firearms would consider their collection incomplete if it did not include a cased set of duelling pistols, preferably by this maker.
Lot 361
A Cased Pair of 28-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols
Lot 361. A Cased Pair of 28-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols, by Robert Wogdon, London, circa 1780, £15,000-20,000
Lot 361. A Cased Pair of 28-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols, by Robert Wogdon, London, circa 1780, £15,000-20,000
Robert Wogdon (1737-1831) specialised in the production of duelling pistols. His fame was celebrated in the poem Stanzas on Duelling by an Irish Volunteer in 1783 which began ‘Hail Wogdon! Patron of that Leaden death…’ Although seemingly plain, his pistols are of the finest workmanship and are remarkable for surviving in exceptional condition, retaining nearly all their original browned and blued finish. These are certainly among my pistols of choice!
In 2019, Bonhams were very proud to have been responsible for the publication of the what is considered to be the seminal work on Wogdon’s life and times, Robert Wogdon, Wogdon & Barton, John Barton, London Gunmakers 1764-1819 written by John O’Sullivan & DeWitt. To order a copy of this book, contact subscriptions@bonhams.com or call +44 (0) 1666 502 200.
David Williams joined Bonhams in 1997 and is the Director of the Bonhams Arms, Armour and Sporting Guns Department. You can reach him at david.williams@bonams.com.
For more from our Arms, Armour and Sporting Guns team, follow @bonhams_guns
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