December 10-13, 2024 Firearms & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 12/10/2024
Incorporating some of the improvements first introduced with the experimental Duke of Richmond muskets, the ‘New Land Pattern’ muskets were introduced following the Treaty of Amiens (1802) to supplant the India Pattern musket temporarily adopted as an expedient arm during the 1790s. However, production was just underway when conflict renewed and the New Land muskets were never produced in sufficient quantity to replace the India Pattern muskets army-wide, despite their obvious superiority. There were two versions: the “New Land Pattern Musket” and the ‘New Land Pattern Light Infantry Musket’. Both featured key-fastened, browned barrels, bayonets with springs, and discarded the handrail butt of earlier Tower muskets. The former (of which this is an example) had a 42-inch barrel, while the latter had one of 39 inches with rear sight. By 1808 sufficient quantities of the New Land Musket had been produced to rearm the entire Brigade of Guards and other elite corps. The New Land Pattern series saw only limited postwar production--just completion of wartime contracys--due to the massive stockpile of India Pattern muskets on hand; as a result, New Land muskets are rarely encountered in collections today. CONDITION: Two of the barrel keys are recent replacements, while the barrel is probably rebrowned. Original flint and in good working order.