Add to calendar
Product Details
* BOSS & CO.
A SCARCE .295/.300 SINGLE-BARRELLED TOPLEVER HAMMERLESS EJECTOR ROOK RIFLE, serial no. 4817,
for 1900, 26 1/8in. octagonal black powder only barrel with partially file-cut top flat, open sights with two folding leaf sights, white metal-inlaid sight lines and markings for 50, 100 and 150 yards, bead fore-sight, the breech end engraved 'BOSS & CO.', '73 ST. JAMES'S ST. LONDON .295 OR .300', hammerless action with slightly rounded bar, removable striker disc, non-selective ejector, automatic safety, fine border and scroll engraving, retaining much original colour-hardening and finish, 14 1/2in. pistolgrip stock with engraved and colour-hardened domed steel pistolgrip-cap, gold oval escutcheon with 'E.C.' monogram surmounted by a Viscount's coronet, Hackett snap fore-end with horn finial, weight 5lb. 9oz., in its leather case, the lid outer embossed with the Viscount coronet and 'E.C'
Provenance: The makers have kindly confirmed that the rifle was ordered together with another, serial no. 4818 in 1900 by Viscount Castlereagh.
The escutcheon and case initials relate to Lady Edith Vane-Tempest-Stewart, at the time recently married to the Viscount Castlereagh in the November of 1899.
Charles Stewart Henry Vane-Tempest-Stewart, 7th Marquess of Londonderry, KG, MVO, PC, PC (Ire) (13 May 1878 - 10 February 1949), styled Lord Stewart until 1884 and Viscount Castlereagh between 1884 and 1915, was a British peer and politician. He is best remembered for his tenure as Secretary of State for Air in the 1930's, preserving the Royal Air Force against cuts, and for his praise of Nazi Germany. In 1936 he entertained the German Ambassador to London, Joachim von Ribbentrop at his county seat of Mount Stewart, County Down. Ribbentrop is reported to have landed in Newtownards with a "noisy gang of SS men" and the four-day visit became a national newspaper story.
Edith Vane-Tempest-Stewart, Marchioness of Londonderry, DBE (née Chaplin, 3 December 1878 - 23 April 1959) was an influential society hostess in the United Kingdom between World War I and World War II, and a noted gardener and writer.
In 1903 she was one of the founding members and member of the first committee of the Ladies Automobile Club. In 1914, after the outbreak of World War I, she was appointed the Colonel-in-Chief of the Women's Volunteer Reserve (WVR), a volunteer force formed of women replacing the men who had left work and gone up to the Front. The WVR was established in December 1914 in response to German bombing raids on East Coast towns during the First World War
Lady Londonderry also assisted with the organisation of the Officers' Hospital set up in her house, and was the first woman to be appointed to be a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Military Division, upon the Order's establishment in 1917.
In the 1920's Lady Londonderry created the gardens at Mount Stewart (which were later proposed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site), which von Ribbentrop described as 'paradise' on his visit. It was said that rather than enter her gardens through a door, Lady Edith would dive in and out of a sash window, followed by her dogs - of which there were 14 at one time, ranging from Deerhound to Pekinese.
During the 1920's and 1930's, Lady Londonderry frequently entertained the first Labour Party Prime Minister, James MacDonald. This was much disapproved of, since her husband was a Conservative cabinet Minister. During a period when women's political allegiances were linked to their husband's parliamentary views Edith sought to contradict the views of her spouse, especially on the issue of women's suffrage. Edith actively supported local suffrage groups in the North of Ireland but hesitated to support the more violent suffragette actions of the Irish Women's Franchise League. Edith was also a firm believer in the equal position of women and if given the chance women could flourish in industries that they were denied access or little involvement with.
Literature: The rifle features in Donald Dallas' definitive history of Boss & Co, 'BOSS & Co. - BEST GUNMAKERS' (second edition) on page 260
* Please note this item is subject to 5% VAT on the hammer price (UK Buyers only).
Please click HERE to view Terms & Conditions. Please note all Lots are listed in accordance with UK Law, for overseas buyers, please ensure you are familiar with your relevant local firearms and customs regulations before bidding.
Estimate £3,000-3,500
Sold as an exempt item under Section 58 (2) of the 1968 Firearms Act, to be held as a curiosity or ornament