April 11-13, 2023 Firearms and Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/11/2023
Single shot palm pistol with knuckles introduced in 1889 during the centennial of the French Revolution, quickly becoming popular with the fearsome Apache gangs in Paris. This nickel finished example chambered in 5mm Flobert is marked "LE CENTENAIR / COUP de POING - PISTOLET. BTE SGO / FRANCE 1789-1889 / AMERIQUE 1789-1889 / DEPOT de PARIS. 5. BD. de Strasbourg". Accompanied by a wonderful fitted box with partitions for cartridges and cleaning brush. The lid label features a large images of the pistol and the original price of "12 Francs", the interior label printed with pictorial instructions. CONDITION: Fine, retaining the majority of the original nickel finish with areas of flaking including a large area at the center of the right side. Mechanically fine with a fair bore. The box has a minor crush on the lid with some flaking along the edges, the labels remaining mostly legible.