Manufactured c. 1880-1885, these "Olive Patent" holsters are distinguished by their unusual oval-shaped skirt. This example bears no maker's marks, but the "olive" design was marketed by many prominent western outfitters up until the turn of the century. A similar holster is pictured on p. 133 of "Packing Iron: Gunleather of the Frontier West" by Rattenbury. The holster takes a 5 1/2 inch Colt Single Action Army and has border and floral tooling and two integral loops in the skirt which capture the body of the holster. The sought after belt is of the earlier thinner style, which was commonly seen during the 1870s and 1880s before being overtaken in popularity by the wider "money" belts. It has a single row of .44/.45 caliber sized cartridge loops and a nickeled and California clipped buckle. It measures approximately 41 inches overall.

Fine overall, the holster and belt both show mild wear and some scattered light age cracking, typical of their age and use, and all of the stitching remains tight. An early holster rig such as this is a must have for a complete Single Action Army collection!