Product Details
C.S. ROSSON & CO.
A PAIR OF LIGHTWEIGHT 12-BORE 'THE ECLIPSE' SELF-OPENING SIDELOCK EJECTORS, serial no. 3654 / 5, with extra choke barrels for No.2,
27in. nitro chopperlump barrels, ribs gold-inlaid '1' and '2' and with fine acanthus scrollwork at the breech ends, tubes engraved 'C.S. ROSSON & CO. RAMPANT HORSE ST. NORWICH.', 2 1/2in. chambers, bored approx. imp. cyl. and 1/2 choke;
extra 27in. nitro chopperlump barrels for No.2 gun, rib gold-inlaid '2*' and with fine acanthus scrollwork at the breech end, tubes engraved 'C.S. ROSSON & CO. LTD. NORWICH.', 2 1/2in. chambers, bored approx. full choke in both;
Edwin Smith patent self-opening actions, patent no. 372,035 of March 1931, fences finely carved in relief with scrolling leaf motifs, removable striker discs, toplevers gold-inlaid '1' and '2' and finely engraved with partridge, automatic safeties with gold-inlaid 'SAFE' details, gold-inlaid cocking-indicators, rolled-edge triggerguards engraved with portraits of spaniels, triggerguard tangs gold-inlaid with the serial numbers, best fine bouquet and scroll engraving, the undersides with the monogram 'CSR', retaining very slight traces of original colour-hardening, 14in. well-figured stocks, weight 6lb. 4oz., in their lightweight leather motor case, the extra barrels in a second lightweight single gun case with provision for two sets of barrels
Provenance: The maker's records prior to 1940 were destroyed by fire during the last war. However, the vendor's research, in conjunction with the assistance of Brent Johnson, a noted researcher of the maker, has established much detail pertaining to the guns. Below are some extracts from a letter to the vendor from Johnson:
"Guns 3654/5 are 'Eclipse' model guns and were made in 1936.
"The Eclipse was introduced in the mid 1930s as their best sidelock gun, previous to this the Norfolk model has been their best gun. The model had a short history as this name was not used by Rosson for their best gun after World War Two, instead they reverted back to Norfolk. The lock engraving remained the same throughout the model's short history, but the underside of the action body either had a Grey Partridge, or later 'CSR' as in your guns.
"Although the locks remain fitted, I can confidently say that they were made by E. Chilton & Son of Sweetman Street, Wolverhampton. [They] were the best gun lock makers at the time, Chilton will be stamped on the inside of the locks."
The vendor's research has established that the guns were built for a Mr. Alston. He believes that the original pair were destroyed by fire during a bombing raid and that Rosson himself made this pair available from his own personal collection. This cannot be verified but Johnson comments in his letter;
"Reading between the lines (the provenance), I would say that it is more likely that Mr. Alston bought one of the new pairs of pre-war guns that Mr. Rosson had in stock after the person who ordered them cancelled the order, and these were being altered to suit Mr. Alston.
"Whatever the case, the provenance does carry some weight, and I would like to think that these guns were used by Mr. Rosson himself. You have an outstanding pair of guns, and these were made at the very pinnacle of the manufacture of C.S. Rosson & Co. guns, the fact that you have a spare set of London proofed barrels for the no.2 gun, and two cases is the icing on the cake. Their condition looks very good, with only normal wear to the stocks, which could be corrected."
Brent Johnson carries out research on most Norfolk makers and may be contacted by e-mail at [email protected]
Estimate £10,000-15,000
S2