This early production London Colt Model 1851 Navy revolver was manufactured circa. 1853 and is pictured and discussed in the Man at Arms Vol. 15 No. 3 from 1993 (copy included). The article "To the Admiral & the Commodore: Compliments of the Inventor-The Story of Two Famous Colt London Navy Pistols by Joseph G. Rosa notes that the revolver has the distinctive British scroll engraving. The back strap is inscribed: "FROM THE INVENTOR/TO ADMIRAL/SIR THOs COCHRANE". The revolver is complete with a British oak case with typical London Colt accessories. Admiral Thomas J. Cochrane G.C.B (1775-1860) was senior British naval officer, radical politician, and was known to the French as "Le Loup des Mers" (The Sea Wolf or The Wolf of the Sea). He was dismissed from the Royal Navy in 1814 due to a conviction for fraud and then fought with the rebel Navy of Chile, Brazil, and Greece during their wars for independence. He rejoined the Royal Navy in 1832 and was given the title Rear Admiral of the Blue. He died in 1860 with the title Admiral of the Red and the honorary title Rear-Admiral of the United Kingdom. Cochrane had a distinguished naval career that included victorious engagements against French and United States warships during the Napoleonic Wars and War of 1812. He participated in the burning of Washington, D.C. in August 1814. The revolver's presentation coincides with the purchase of 23,500 London Model 1851 Navy revolvers by the British government in 1854. Nearly half of these revolvers were issued to the Royal Navy and, as discussed in the article, Cochrane was involved in the process that generated those orders, and thus, the revolver was likely given to grease the wheels. This revolver has the early First London Model brass back strap and small oval trigger guard. The top of the barrel is roll-stamped: "- ADDRESS COL: COLT. LONDON.-" with arrows at either end on the legend. "COLTS PATENT" is hand engraved in a ribbon on the left side of the frame. The cylinder is roll-engraved with the Texas Navy battle scene and "COLTS PATENT No." London "CROWN/V" and "CROWN/CP" proof and inspection marks are stamped on the left side of the barrel lug ahead the wedge and over each cylinder chamber. The serial number "1623" is stamped on the loading lever, bottom of the barrel lug, frame, trigger guard, back strap, cylinder and arbor pin. The wedge is not serial numbered. A punch-dot is stamped above or below the serial numbers on the barrel lug, frame, trigger guard and back strap which indicates these parts were designated by the factory for engraving or special finish. The barrel and cylinder have a high polish blue finish. The loading lever, frame and hammer are color casehardened, and the brass trigger guard and back strap are silver plated. The one piece grip is highly figured walnut with a high polish piano finish. The revolver is decorated with distinctive British scroll engraving on a lined background. The engraving style and coverage are nearly identical to Colt London Navy serial number 1651 illustrated on page 246 of "THE COLT ENGRAVING BOOK VOLUME ONE" by R.L. Wilson. The British style oak case is lined with red baize lining and has six compartments. A Colt instruction label is glued to the inside of the lid. The case contains: (1) steel cleaning rod with blued steel handle, (2) L-shaped combination screwdriver/nipple wrench, (3) straight handle iron double cavity bullet mold stamped "COLTS/PATENT" on the top of the sprue cutter and "36B" on the right mold block, (4) large black japanned cap tin with green paper "Eley Bros." 250 cap label, (5) English bag shaped powder flask with lanyard loop and adjustable charger marked: "COLTS NAVY FLASK" and "JAMES DIXON/& SONS/SHEFFIELD". Also included with the revolver are pages from a book on Cochrane, a loose copy of the article discussed above, research on Cochrane, and original slides of the images used in the article. Samuel Colt presentation revolvers are the rarest and most historic Colt percussion firearms.

Very good plus. The revolver has moderate handling wear and retains nearly 25% original blue and casehardened finish. Nearly all of the silver plated finish is present on the trigger guard and back strap. The cylinder retains most of the naval battle scene. Firing wear is limited to some scattered spots of light pitting on the sides of the hammer. The nicely figured walnut grip is in fine condition and has nearly all of the high polish piano finish. The presentation inscription of the back strap is crisp. The delicate English scroll engraving is sharp and deep. The case and accessories are all original and remain in good overall condition. The exterior of the case has been revarnished and shows moderate handling wear. The red baize interior lining is faded and torn in the areas that contacted the front sight and hammer. The Colt instruction label is stained but complete. The cleaning rod has some surface rust and finish wear. The screwdriver has some rust and retains about 50% of the niter blue finish. The bullet mold has clear markings and has aged to a mottled gray patina with scattered dents and scratches. The cap tin contains most of the caps and retains about 75% of the japanned finish; the label is faded and may have been added to the tin. The flask is in good condition and retains about 70% of the brown lacquer finish on the body and about 25% of the gold plated finish on the top and charger. Most of the fire blue finish is present on the spring. The Colt and Dixon markings on the top are sharp. There are several minor dents in the flask body. This is a good example of a rare and historic Samuel Colt presentation English cased and engraved Model 1851 London Navy revolver.