September 9, 10, & 11, 2025 Firearms & Militaria
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 9/9/2025
Per the included factory letter, this gun was built on May 17th, 1901, as a hammerless ejector pigeon gun, 12 bore, with 2 - 3/4" chambers, 30" Whitworth steel barrels, "Choke" chokes (letter notes "just less than Full choke"), 14 - 3/4" length of pull, third grip, side clips, and a 7 lbs 9 oz weight, for John Jackson, Westmoreland Club, Richmond, Virginia. Chopper lump barrels with a diminutive bead front sight on a smooth, solid, swamped, concave rib engraved "J. PURDEY & SONS. AUDLEY HOUSE SOUTH AUDLEY STREET. LONDON. MADE OF SIR JOSEPH WHITWORTH'S FLUID PRESSED STEEL". Underside with of barrels with "SS" barrel maker initials for Sam Simons, matching "17106" tube numbers, "CHOKE", and sequential "25095" and "25096" adjacent forearm loop. Barrel flats with Nitro proofs for a choked 12 gauge at 1 - 1/4 oz of shot. Right barrel has been opened up from original choke to Cylinder. Splinter forearm with an Anson plunger style release, checkered in a point pattern, with rose and scrollwork on exterior iron. Interior iron with matching serial number and actioner initials "WN" for Wesley Nobbs. Purdey style self opening action with view proofs on action flats, Purdey third bite, and disc set strikers. Sidelocks engraved in Purdey house rose and scroll, with arrowhead cocking indicators and signed "J. PURDEY & SONS" at bottom of action. Underside with "PURDEY'S PATENT" and rose and scroll en suite. Walnut stock with a ripple wave grain and nice fiddling with an English style straight grip, point pattern checkering about the wrist, and a checkered butt. Housed in leather wrapped case with dark maroon lining, James Purdey trade label, and original charge card for 1 - 1/4 oz of no. 6 shot. Accessories comprise cleaning rod, mops, jags, oil bottle, pair snapcaps, rod handle, turnscrew, spanner wrench, and some reloading tools including case tool, tamper, cartridge remover, and shot tool. Purdey still makes live pigeons guns on request and require an extensive wait. CONDITION: Barrels with the vast majority of a good quality reblue, with some surface spotting and handling marks throughout, and a few old pits under the bluing. Splinter forearm refinished, with exterior iron essentially bright metal, and some scattered handling marks and impressions. Action bright with some handling marks and some spots of age discoloration in recesses. Stock excellent as refinished, shortened, and checkering recut. Mechanically fine, ejectors are in time but right barrel is notably weaker than left, bore with areas of oxidation throughout. Case and accessories very good with typical handling marks, some rubs through baize, exterior leather cleaned and refinished.