October 30 - November 2, 2018 Firearms, Militaria, & Sporting
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/30/2018
Comprising: A) Fine pair of French flintlock officer's pistols with tapered round steel barrels with partial flat rib on tops, mounted with silver half-moon front sights. Flat lockplates engraved with shells at rear tangs and inscribed in centers "Thiolliere/ le Jeune". " Rogers took the pistols from a French officer during the French and Indian War. Solid sterling silver mounts have French hallmarks. Pierced and chiseled sideplates display fine foliate scrolls and serpents at backs, pierced silver wrist escutcheons have crowns over vacant panels with masks below. Triggerguards have relief panels on bows and terminate in acanthus leaf finials. Stirruped buttcaps have portraits of king on one and queen on the other, sides with grotesque masks and scrollwork in high relief. Walnut stocks are profusely carved with relief scrolls and shell designs around entry ferrules and barrel tangs. Complete with period bone-tipped wooden ramrods. CONDITION: Good. Locks and barrels show some wear and retain a light grey freckled patina, some heavier corrosion around toucholes. Locks are in their original flintlock configuration. Silver retains a grey patina, darker in protected areas, a few scattered marks and some light high edge wear. Stocks good with some age cracks and scattered marks, one internal mainspring has pushed the wood and it is bowed slightly. Part of one silver gripcap stirrup has been replaced. A very ornate and attractive pair of pre-French and Indian War period pistols.
These pistols are one of only three or four pairs known by this maker. The Thiollere family lived in St. Etienne, France. From the early 1600's, they had a colliery and were advisors to the royal family. The escutcheons on both pistols bear the crest of Hussar Colonel Count Andrassy. B) Powder Horn of Thomas Simons, dated 1762. According to family tradition the powder horn was given to Rogers by a Native American chief. The curved 13" body retains a pleasing dark honey patina and has not been cleaned. The butt is a convex wood plug with a brass knob. The spout has one relief ring and scalloped edge between sections. The horn is lightly carved with scenes of ships at anchor flying the colonial American flag, a 13 stripe flag with a British Union Jack in the canton. Also depicted is a town square with a church and buildings, perhaps colonial Salem, Massachusetts. CONDITION: Very good, showing some light wear from carrying. Strap is associated and is a later addition. This powder horn, along with the pistols, was passed down through Lieutenant Patrick Roger's(1705-1796) family. Lt. Rogers of Pemaquid, Maine, brought the powder horn and pistols home at the end of the French and Indian War. According to family tradition, they were given to Rogers by a Native American chief at the end of the war. The horn has hung on the wall of Maj. Robert Huston (1774-1858) house in Damarascotta, Maine, for over two centuries. A Thomas Simmons fought in the French and Indian War as a member of the 1st Connecticut Troops commanded by General Lyman, in 12th Company under Captain Spaulding, from April to December of 1761, when he was discharged from service. He later fought with the 8th Connecticut Regiment and died in battle in 1777. A letter from William Dykes on his letterhead is included with the items. Also, a letter from the family that the items were purchased from is included. This is a very well-documented and historic French and Indian War period grouping of items.
Caliber/Bore
.60 Smoothbore
Manufacturer
Thiolliere LeJeune
Model
Flintlock Officers Pistols