This stunning rifle is an authentic recreation of an original Frederick Sell rifle. This rifle by Jerry Kirklin (1938-2021) was featured on the cover of the September/October 1984 issue of "Man at Arms" where the original rifle is noted as "widely known to be the favorite rifle of Joe Kindig, Jr., and is described and illustrated, as gun No. 184, in his monumental volume 'Thoughts on the Kentucky Rifle in its Golden Age'. (Ralph E. Arnold collection)". In the book Kindig wrote: "No. 184 is one of the grandest Kentucky rifles that I have ever seen. It is signed 'Frederick Sell' on a brass plate in the barrel and 'F S' on the brass lock plate which Sell unquestionably made. This gun is really a work of art from one end to the other. The magnificent curly maple stock is adorned with nine engraved brass and two engraved silver inlays. Under the cheek piece there is a beautiful spiral-fluted piece of brass that held a priming wire. The chevron engraving on the muzzle cap is a nice detail. The very unusual rear sight has some beautiful C-scroll work in the iron. The gun has another unusual detail. The side plate with four piercings is one of the most beautiful I have seen on a Kentucky...The unusually beautiful trigger has a curlicue on the end and beautiful piercings to the rear. The patch box is an almost perfect work of art in both outline and engraving. It has ten piercings (the most I have found on a Frederick Sell patch box), and the head terminates in a very beautiful bird. It is so beautifully designed and engraved that I consider it a masterpiece of American art of the period. A very interesting detail in this rifle is a button which might logically be the lid release but which actually is what today we call a booby-trap. There is a hole in the center of the button, and in that hole, there is a stationary pin. When you press this button, the pin pierces your finger. The real release for the patch box lid is hidden away in the engraved molding on the buttplate. The long toe plate on this rifle is beautifully engraved in the style Frederick Sell knew so well. The finest carving is beautifully executed in high relief in practically all places that were ever carved on Kentuckys. The cheek piece is almost covered with unusually well designed C-scrolls and cross-hatching. There is also a beautiful detail of carving forward of the side and lock plates. The many fine details so expertly executed make this one of the most beautiful Kentuckys I have ever seen. This gun alone would place Frederick Sell among the great masters of Kentucky rifle making." That description certainly fits the current rifle which additionally has a faint "R. PARIS & SON" marking on the right barrel flat and "Built by J Kirklin/1981" found on the underside of the patchbox lid if you can figure out the release without getting poked!

Exceptionally fine overall with minimal wear. Mechanically excellent.