Product Details
WESTLEY RICHARDS, LONDON
A SCARCE PRESENTATION .450 CAPPING BREECH-LOADING RIFLE, MODEL 'MONKEYTAIL SPORTING RIFLE', serial no. 5869,
dated for 1876, with octagonal 28in. barrel, raised broad and matted top-rib fitted with a dove-tailed blade fore-sight and an 'African' multi-leaf rear sight comprising of an adjustable ladder and provision for eight ranged folding leaves (two absent), the right hand side near breech signed 'WHITWORTH PATENT', the breech cut with a narrow sunken vacant dove-tail and marked '70 GRAINS', fully border and scroll engraved flip-up breech-block with triangular trade-mark to tail and the legend 'MANUFACTURED BY WESTLEY RICHARDS' incorporated into the body of the engraving within ribbons, fully border and scroll engraved lockplate and hammer, the front of lock signed 'WESTLEY RICHARDS' within a scrolled ribbon, the triangular trade-mark incorporating the date '1876', sliding safe forwards of the hammer, chequered walnut pistol-grip half-stock (cracked through left hand side-cheek), large rectangular fully scroll engraved iron patch-box fitted to the left hand side of butt, the lid further inlaid with a gilt coat of arms bearing the motto 'VRYHEID IMMIGRATIE' for the Orange Free State of South Africa, chequered end to butt with separate engraved toe and heel plates, fully border and scroll engraved silver pistol-grip cap, border and scroll engraved trigger-guard tang and bow with single set trigger, plain silver oval barrel key escutcheons with scroll engraved nose-cap and brass tipped hardwood ramrod, externally worn with some loss to detail
Provenance: The vendor has kindly provided us with the following:
In 1899 my Grandfather, Captain A W Pope was serving with the Welsh Regiment in the Boer War at Paardeberg.
My Grandfather told my Father, Scott A W Pope, that the Boer wives and children had been rounded up and put into concentration camps leaving their homes empty. My Grandfather removed this rifle from an empty farm house to prevent it falling into the wrong hands. He then bought it home with him to the U.K.
My Father Scott A W Pope, now aged 90, remembers from his early childhood that this rifle stood in the corner of the downstairs toilet of his childhood home at Party-Seal Grosmont near Abergavenny Monmouthshire.
My Grandfather died aged 79 in 1958, and the rifle was inherited by my Father Scott A W Pope, and has hung in his hallway for the remainder of the time it has been in the POPE family.
Please click HERE to view Terms & Conditions.
Estimate £400-600