Exhibition Grade Third Model Winchester 1866 rifle engraved and signed by John Ulrich. This exceptional rifle has a gold-plated, engraved, receiver, forearm cap and buttplate. The receiver is engraved with two highly detailed, semi-relief, game scenes on each side of the receiver. The scenes are surrounded by profuse scrollwork with restrained borders. The flawlessly executed engraving has a three-dimensional, relief, quality and represents some of John Ulrich's best and most elaborate work. The engraving covers the forearm cap, the receiver including the upper and lower tangs and the buttplate heel. "J. ULRICH" is stamped in tiny letters on the lower tang behind the trigger. The serial number, "103671" is enclosed in an engraved ribbon on the lower tang behind the lever latch and stamped on the inside of the buttplate. The top barrel flat is roll-stamped with the two-line Winchester Repeating Arms legend with King's Patent marking ahead of the rear sight. The rifle has a blued octagon barrel and full-length magazine. The barrel has a sporting style front sight with nickel-silver blade and Henry style, folding leaf rear sight with rounded top. Factory sling swivels are fitted to the forearm cap and stock. The trigger is sharply pointed with a rounded front face. The hammer and lever are color casehardened. The crescent buttplate has a hinged trap door and the butt trap contains a four-piece jointed steel cleaning rod with brass tip. The stock and forearm are 3X fancy grain walnut with a high polish piano finish. "3X" is stamped on the left side of the tang underneath the stock.

Very good. The rifle is completely original and has not been altered or improved. The blue finish on the barrel and magazine has aged to a smooth, plum brown, patina. The barrel legend is faint. The hammer retains most of the faded case colors while the casehardened finish on the lever has a brown patina. The loading gate has mottled, silver-gray, patina. The forearm cap, receiver and buttplate retain 30% of the gold-plated finish in protected areas. The semi-relief engraved game scenes and intricate scrollwork are sharp. The tiny "J. ULRICH" signature is clear. The 3X, fancy grain, stock and forearm are in fine condition and retain most of the original piano finish. The finish has dulled somewhat from age and both the stock and forearm have scattered, minor handling marks. This extraordinary, Exhibition Grade, Model 1866 Winchester rifle displays some of the finest and most detailed engraving executed by John Ulrich, one of the finest of the Winchester factory engravers.