Full-stock - Southern style percussion smoothbore - "J. Perry Warrented" marked lock - .56 cal.; 46" oct/rd barrel. - About good condition. - Mottled light bright gray metal w/ pitting around nipple; crisp engraving on lock & hammer; brass furniture. Missing hammer spring. Sanded stock w/ losses & cracks along barrel channel. - antq - item #ZA-P577a - $875

A.W. Spies marked - New York heavy barrel percussion rifle - .40 cal.; 32 oct/rd barrel, almost 1 outside diameter. - Good condition. - Mottled dark metal with engraved hammer, lock plate, barrel & tang; A.W. Spies on lockplate; some pitting around nipple area, otherwise fairly smooth. Brass furniture; nickel silver inlays on cheekpieces on both sides of stock; nosecap has solder repair at bottom. Working. Stock has several cracks, with small neat nail reinforcement to wrist; wood filler repair at on loss on left front barrel channel, and to replace missing wedge escutcheons. - Spies is listed in various references as gunsmith and a dealer in New York in the 1820’s to 1860 era. Per Dr. James Whisker, the lock was probably supplied by Spies, with the gun likely the product of a New York state gunsmith. This strikes me a rather elegant little gun. - antq - item #MP-S308b - $1,275

Heavy barrel bench rest percussion rifle - Wesson style - .38 caliber; 31 heavy octagon to round barrel, 1.4 across flats. Very good - Previous cataloger listed this as a fine Frank Wesson style brass frame rifle. I’m not sure what Wesson style should look like, but sounds good to me. Receiver and trigger guard are crisp moderate patina brass; single set trigger with an engraved side mounted hammer. Barrel has original barleycorn shaped dovetail front sight and is missing rear sight. Made without forearm, it has an excellent straight grain walnut stock with checkered wrist, long tang. Crisp smooth german silver buttplate and patchbox. Barrel is cleaned medium light gray w/ salt & pepper spotting. Trigger return requires assist, otherwise working with excellent nipple; bore has very strong rifling w/ some individual pits. - antq - item #MP-Target - $1,450

Full-stock - Southern style percussion rifle - approx. .40 cal.; 38.75 oct. barrel. - Condition is good to fair. - Dark brown metal w/ roughness & scaling; patina brass furniture; two empty & one filled rear sight dovetails (no rear sight). Not working, rear set trigger is missing. Structurally sound tiger stripe stock w/ losses around nipple & hammer areas. Wooden ramrod. - antq - item #MP-K308a - $850

Half stock percussion rifle – Biddle lock, broken stock - .36 caliber; 34" ot. barrel. – Good condition. – Dark patina metal; markings & engravings weak in places, appears to read "R. & W.C. BIDDLE". Hammer does not hold cock; double set triggers. Well done old steel filler to top of lockplate (conversion from flint?) and brass plate repair to wood in front of nipple. Patina brass furniture. Stock is broken through at wrist; nice tiger stripe on forend. – antq – item #MP-BIDL – $585

Osborne - British brass barrel percussion blunderbus - out of Calcutta - 1.25" diameter flared muzzle on 15.75" octagon round barrel, - Fine condition. - Mellow patina brass barrel, marked "O(?)BORN(?) LONDON" (two letter faint to gone, but I suspect this is "Osborne"), with crown V & crown GP London proofs, a bit of scroll engraving at breech. Lockplate, hammer, and barrel tang are crisp mottled gray with strong engraving. Patina brass buttplate & pineapple filial triggerguard similarly engraved, with german silver engraved top tang on buttplate. Number "10" on rear tang of triggerguard. Missing one german silver escutcheon on barrel wedge. Brass pipes & ramrod ends; wooden ramrod (ebony?). Very good mech; intact nipple. Fine intact stock with strong checkering, usage & handling dings, and nearly all varnish intact; excellent horn nosecap. - Attached to the left side of the buttstock with old cellophane tape is a yellowed tag, printed "D.N. Biswas & Co. / Oldest Indian Gun Shop / 10 Dalhousie Square (East), / Calutta-1". Inked in the space for "name" is C. Lee JR". - s/n 10 - antq - item #MP-10 - $3,250

Percussion boar rifle - probably German - .62 cal.; 30-7/8" slow taper octagon barrel. - Fine to very good condition. - Smooth dark brown patina most metal parts, unmarked back action lock with brass furniture and a serpentine brass trigger guard and brass musket style buttplate. Tumbler has a cleanout screw, original ramrod with brass mushroom head and a steel body covered with stacked leather washers. Barrel has a dirty bore with deep 12 groove rifling, tiny fixed sights, and a bayonet lug on right side. Very good full length walnut stock had dings & usage marks, with 90% finish. Stylized brass nosecap with integral ramrod guide and swivel base. Stock is secured to the barrel with two wedges. The stock has a checkered wrist and a deep cheekpiece with a relief carved daisy at the rear. Very good mech. - Ok, I’m not sure exactly what a boar rifle should look like, but was told this is one, and am perfectly willing to believe it. Looks like that big hole in the end should get the job done, & I guess the bayo lug is in the same tradition as European hunting swords. Whatever it is, it’s a pretty nifty perc. rifle in an interesting configuration with nice condition. - antq - item #MP-Boar - $1,385

Half stock percussion rifle - Deer Creek lock - .46 caliber; 36 octagon barrel - Very good condition. - Crisp mottled patina metal; engraved hammer; DEER CREEK marked on lockplate. The barrel has a more recent stamping of WHITTINGTON 1990, I suspect this indicates a recent owner used the gun at the NRA shooting center in New Mexico. Double set trigger needs adjustment; very good bore. Sound wood is in very good condition, probably sanded &/or refinished; brass ramrod thimbles appear to have been recently soldered to underbarrel rib. - antq - item #MP-DCRK - $650

Unmarked Southern style -half stock percussion rifle - .32 cal.; 40" oct. barrel. - Fair condition. - Brown metal with light roughness; heavy pitting around nipple area; unmarked other than light engraving on lock plate. Working; double set trigger; intact nipple. Visible rifling in heavily pitted bore. - Patina brass furniture on structurally sound refinished stock with significant wood losses on both sides of pewter nosecap. - antq - item #MP-South - $460

Percussion Pennsylvania rifle - John Rodden inscribed - museum collection (see note) - ..48 cal.; 29” oct. barrel. – Per Dr. James Whisker, this piece resembles Civil War era Turner rifles from the Cincinnati area.   Good condition. - Dark patina metal w/ very light pinpoint pitting on barrel, heavier on hammer & nipple area.  Under barrel half rib.  Pewter nosecap, other furniture brass w/ light patina.  Double set trigger mech. is working, but hammer does not engage cock.  Structurally sound stock is missing a large chunk at toe, with small loss at lockplate.  Ramrod is missing tip.   - See “Museum collection” comments this issue.  Museum / collector applied markings include J.A. Maltby on lock & barrel w/ Galena No. 63 added to barrel marking.  Engraved inscription on patchbox lid appears older, not in the stamped style of other museum markings, possibly period of use, reading “John Rodden / Hanover Ill” in fancy script. - antq - item #MP-171R - $685

Note on "Museum collection" item above

“Museum collection” items in this catalog. - Please note. - This Dispatch contains a number of intriguing guns from a museum collection.  Many of these include markings or documentation that suggest historical attribution.  Many are also marked MALTBY.  - The story is that many of these guns were reported loaned to the Galena Historical Society Museum in 1938, and reclaimed by the heirs of the lender around 1970 with museum tags intact. - It is believed that many of the markings on these guns were applied either by the collector or by the museum.  The “MALBY” markings seem to be common to this collection, probably indicating ownership of the collection.  Other markings suggesting historical attribution appear to be a mixed bag - some appear to be certainly applied by the museum or collector, others possibly from the period of use.  It is of course very possible that the markings applied by the museum or collector indicate legitimate historical attribution that at one time accompanied the gun.  They may also be intentionally or unintentionally incorrect. - Inscribed powder horns accompany some of the guns.  Several of these horns in particular appear to have been decorated later than period-of-use, probably to enhance the display of the guns and explain their “stories”.   The Galena Historical Society Museum cannot authenticate these firearm and related items.  They were a loan to the Museum and were used for display purposes only, never authenticated or accessioned into the Museum collection.  The Galena Historical Society Museum does not sell collection artifacts and was not associated in any way with the sale of these items.  - I personally find it very interesting that these pieces appear to have had some historical attribution dating back at least to the 1930’s. - It would not surprise me if some were indeed authentic. I believe some are likely bogus.  However, it is doubtful that any will ever be able to be definitely proven.

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