Durs Egg (1748-1831) was a Swiss born gunmaker who emigrated to London from Paris and established his own shop at 1 Pall Mall in 1772. He was among the most well-regarded makers of his era and was particularly known for his fine dueling pistols. Though dueling was already outlawed in many areas by the early 19th century when these pistols were produced, dueling remained a regular part of upper class society, especially in the United States where political and personal matters regularly led to bloodshed among even some of the highest ranking men in society. This set includes two matching flintlock dueling pistols in a Durs Egg labelled case fitted to the guns with a bullet mold, powder flask, lead balls, brush, screwdriver, vent pick, bore rod, vice, and wadding. As was essentially standard on late English dueling pistols, each gun has fixed sights, smooth bores, and adjustable single set triggers with visible adjustment screws. They also have "D. EGG, LONDON," in gold on their top barrel flats, gold bands at the breech end of the barrels just behind the rear sights, gold lined vents and flash pans, gold thumb plates, "D Egg" on the lock which has a roller on the frizzen toe and had sliding safeties (removed), engraving on most components, silver wedge escutcheons, and walnut half stocks with checkered wrists.

Very good. The pistol has dark gray patina throughout, nearly all of the original gold accents, and traces of original blue finish on the refinished trigger guard. The stock has minor pressure marks and scratches, crisp checkering, and a slight crack at the toe. The lock and set trigger are mechanically excellent, but the safety has been removed as noted above and the frizzen has been refaced. The markings and engraving patterns are crisp. The relined case is good with reproduction retailer label, moderate storage type wear including flaking, staining, and fading of the interior lining. The accessories are very good.

See A.

Fine. The metal surfaces are primarily dark brown with some light pitting and scattered minor marks. Nearly all of the gold inlay remains. There are traces of original blue finish on the lower components. The stock is very good and has crisp checkering, minor dings and scratches, and a very faint hairline crack behind the nose cap. The lock and set trigger function fine. However, the safety has been removed, and the frizzen has been refaced. The fact that the frizzens have been refaced, along with the signs of actual use throughout, suggests these pistols saw more use than many dueling pistol sets, and they may have been used by an officer during military service.