The striking and extraordinary factory master engraving was executed by the late great Howard Dove in honor of President James Monroe, the last of the "Virginia Dynasty" presidents, the last Founding Father to serve as president, and the famous creator of the "Monroe Doctrine" which emphasized that the U.S. considered the Western Hemisphere its sphere of influence, recognized the independent countries formed from European former colonies, and would see European attempts at influencing affairs in the hemisphere as "the manifestation of an unfriendly disposition toward the United States". By the end of the century, nearly all of the European former colonies had become independent or largely autonomous. In many ways, the Monroe Doctrine helped pave the way for westward expansion across the breadth of the continent and thus allowed for the fulfillment of what some Americans saw as our "Manifest Destiny." The revolver has primarily a deep royal blue finish and nicely contrasting gold accents. The main engraving is traditional scrollwork with punch dot backgrounds. The barrel has two thin gold bands at the muzzle, "James Monroe" in script with a decorative border and three stars before and after, a wider gold band at the breech, and the one-line address on top. The unfluted cylinder has the White House in gold (Monroe was the first president to move back into the White House after it was burned in the War of 1812), the stars and stripes on the right in gold, and thirteen gold inlaid stars at the rear. The frame has gold inlaid borders, the standard patent marking, and a special gold inlaid "1-JM" serial number. The recoil shield was reshaped and has a bust of Monroe with a gold border. The top of the back strap is inscribed "1817-1825" (the years of Monroe's presidency), and the back has "5th PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES." The ejector head, cylinder arbor pin, hammer, trigger, and grip straps are all also gold-plated. The grips have "1-JM" on the underside, carved scroll and Fluer-De-Lis designs, and gold inlaid Great Seal of the United States medallions. The grip straps are numbered "SA07741" indicating manufacture in 1978, and the left side on the butt has "HOWARD M. DOVE COLT ENGR. 6-80" indicating engraving in June 1980. The factory letter details the various features including the engraver, ostrich leather display case, accessories with matching carved materials, and shipment on December 19, 1980. The case also has a protective canvas outer cover.

Near new with only light handling marks and some small amounts of grip adhesive visible. Mechanically excellent. The case and accessories are also excellent. This is an absolutely beautiful revolver adorned by one of the finest Master Engravers in American history and dedicated to one of our most memorable presidents.