Fine English Made East Indian Government Pattern 1858 Percussion Pistol by Joseph Smith

Carbine Bore (.65 caliber). 8" wedge retained barrel. NSN. Blued barrel, color casehardened lock and hammer, brass mountings, walnut stock. Single shot percussion smoothbore muzzleloading pistol with fixed notch rear sight, front sight blade, swivel ramrod and lanyard ring in butt. Lock marked BIRMINGHAM/1871 forward of the hammer and with a British {CROWN}/{BROAD ARROW}/EIG for East Indian Government ownership at the tail. Left breech with British military proof marks and an added mark in a local dialect (maybe Hindi or Urdu) forward of the proofs. Left flat with an East Indian Government storekeeper's mark and the name of the contractor who made the gun, Joseph Smith. Reverse of butt with a Ferozpur Arsenal mark of FA 3 1885, indicting it was in stores at that Indian arsenal in 1885. This is a classic example of the British Empire's policy of keeping their local colonial forces at least one or two technologies behind the regular British Army when it came to small arms. In a period when the British military was using cartridge revolvers, the East Indian Government's local colonial troops were still being armed with single shot smoothbore percussion pistols. A really fine condition example from a time when the "sun never set on the British Empire."

This lot is located in Cincinnati.

Fine. Fine bore is mostly bright with lightly scattered oxidation. Barrel with much of the blue intact, lock with most of the vibrant case colors present. Markings remain clear and crisp. Mechanically functional lock. Stock crisp with numerous scattered bumps, dings and mars and clear markings.

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Please email [email protected] for any additional information or questions you may have regarding this lot.

Mr. Tim Carey

Associate Vice President, Head of Department, Arms, Armor and Militaria

[email protected]513.666.4984

Mr. Carey joined Cowan’s, a Freeman's company, in 2021 and is a 40-year veteran of the sporting arms and outdoor recreation industry. Carey joined Cowan’s from Griffin & Howe at Hudson Farms in Andover, N.J., where he was responsible for the acquisition, appraisal, and consignment of top-tier firearms consignments from important makers such as James Purdey & Sons of London, Beretta, Caesar Guerini, B. Rizzini, Bertuzzi, Renato Telo, and Anderson Wheeler.

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Fine English Made East Indian Government Pattern 1858 Percussion Pistol by Joseph Smith

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