This lot consists of a pair of three barrel pistols of a most unusual design crafted by William and John Rigby of Dublin, Ireland. John Rigby officially first opened a shop in 1775 and the family had shops in London and Dublin and remains active today as John Rigby & Company. John Rigby died in 1818 leaving the firm to his son William, and his second, son John II, joined as a partner in the early 1820s. They operated under their joint names until the firm became John Rigby & Co. in 1866. The brothers were particularly known for their pocket pistols, dueling pistols, target rifles, and fine sporting arms for Irish and English gentlemen. Some of their pistols were simpler turn-over/swivel-breech pistols, but others utilized this more complex design. Each of these pistols features three barrels in a triangular configuration that are all independently attached and a rotating striker disc on the hammer that must be rotated manually to the next nipple Rigby pistols with this mechanism have been recorded with six or more barrels on a single pistol. Each barrel is numbered 1-6. One pistol has barrels marked 1 through 3, and the other has barrels marked 4 through 6; these markings without a doubt make these pistols a pair. Each barrel is stamped with a British proof and seven-pointed star designs at the muzzles but are smoothbore. The sides of the hammer are floral engraved while the spur is checkered. The sides of the metal bodies feature very attractive floral scroll engraving with partial borders. The left sides are signed "Wm&Jn Rigby," and the right sides have "Dublin." The back strap is accented with floral engraved motifs. The pommels are pierced to form large lanyard rings; this is a rather rare and unusual feature not commonly found on pistols from the era. Most pistols that were designed for lanyards had small, separate rings on the pommels. Their overall length is only 5 1/2 inches. A lanyard would have made it easier to extract these pistols from the pockets of a frock or great coat in case the pistols were needed to defend against criminals. Crime was particularly rampant in Ireland during the 19th century due to serious economic distress and the famous Irish Potato Famine.

As described in "A".