In all respects at first glance this appears to be a standard issue, mid-WWI German Artillery Luger pistol. However upon closer examination this pistol has actually been highly modified and equipped with an experimental, "sear bar/key safety, that is mounted on the top of the side plate. Over the years both in the military and civilian use of the Luger pistols, there have been considerable safety problems with the standard sear bar mechanism/side plate design, as the pistol could and did accidentally fire when the sear was depressed, regardless of if the safety was engaged or not. However in this example it appears DWM was experimenting or developing some type of sear bar/key safety that would actually block the sear from being depressed, not allowing the pistol to fire and or be cocked until removed. This design probably predates the later "Police Sear Safety" and may have actually been the basis for how that design evolved, or was based on! In a typical Luger pistol the sear bar mechanism is actually a two-piece design that hinges in the middle when the pistol is fired and the side plate is a single piece that basically covers the front end of the sear bar assembly. However on this pistol the top of the side plate has been milled away and a large rotating locking lever/key has been installed. The way this works is that on the backside of this rotating lever there is an eccentric cam or key that fits into or through the side plate and which interfaces with a long, flat metal spring that has been installed onto the side of the barrel extension. On the bottom of the long metal spring there is a small protrusion that fits into the sear bar. When the lever or key is inserted into the side plate and rotated down, the pistol will fire it the normal fashion. However when this lever/key is rotated up and or removed from the side plate, the sear bar assembly is blocked and will not allow the pistol to be cocked or fired, regardless of if there is a loaded magazine in the pistol or the position of the safety lever. Now exactly where or how this design was later used is certainly subject to further speculation and or additional research, as this is certainly a one of a kind Luger pistol with a very interesting experimental design. The balance of the pistol appears to be standard in all respects and is as follows; the chamber is dated 1916 with the front toggle marked "DWM". The right side of the barrel extension has the standard "Crown over Script letter" proofs, next to a single "Imperial Eagle" firing proof. The bottom of the artillery barrel has the matching serial number along with the letter suffix and same firing proof. The pistol has been correctly numbered in the military manner with the full serial number on the major parts with the last two digits on other parts. The artillery barrel has the standard fixed front sights tangent rear graduated from 100-800 meters with standard "GESICHERT" and "GELADEN" markings. The magazine is a standard WWI nickel plated version with the wooden base marked on the bottom, "7251/c/+/Crown Proof".

Very fine overall with 85% of the period applied rust blued finish with wear on the edges and high spots overall, with some arsenal touch up blue on the grip straps and barrel. The various smaller parts retain 70% of their straw colors, with even wear and fading. The grips are in very fine condition with nice distinct checkering on both sides, with only minor handling marks overall. This pistol has matching numbers except the magazine as noted above and one grip which is correctly unnumbered. Certainly a very unusual Luger pistol that is worthy of considerably more research.