A Fine Pair of Over & Under Tap-Action Flintlock Pistols by John Richards of London Hallmarked for 1779 / 1780

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Price: £5,750

Ref: 62080690

Item Description

A fine pair of over-and-under flintlock pistols by John Richards dating to circa 1780. The pistols are mounted with four stage turn-off rifled cannon barrels stamped with London Gun Company Proof and View marks. The walnut stocks are swollen towards the butt ends and profusely inlaid with scrolling designs of inlaid silver wire and mounted with silver butt caps featuring grotesque pug butt masks stamped with Birmingham marks for 1779 / 1780.

The actions and barrels retain much of their original blued finish.  Each action, cock, thumb lever and trigger guard is finely engraved with foliage with the name “RICHARDS inside a ribbon on one side of the action.  Each trigger guard incorporates a sliding safety feature.

The working parts are in fine crisp order. The pistols overall are in excellent condition and of display quality. The barrels are 3.5 inches (9 cm) long and consecutively numbered 1, 2, 3 & blank. Overall the pistols are 9 and 1/8 of an inch (just over 23 cm) measured diagonally extremity to extremity.

John Richards is recorded as probably originating in Birmingham and having various premises in the Strand from 1775 until he died in 1821 with a short period in Lombard Street from 1781 – 1783 (Blackmore, A Dictionary of London Gunmakers 1350-1850, page 168)