Despite being manufactured during the middle of the Civil War, this revolver remains very close to what it would have looked like when it left the Colt factory in 1863. The Colt Model 1862 Police, known in the period as "Colt's Police Pistol" and "Colt's New Model Revolving Police Pistol," is one of the most attractive and most advanced of all of the Colt percussion revolvers and is highly sought after. It was the last model released during Samuel Colt's life. Formal police departments were fairly new and just starting to be more common in the U.S. when this model came out as American cities grew rapidly in size in the mid-19th century. Hartford itself established their first police department in 1860, so Colt had a new market to tap into. The '62 Police combines improvements from the Model 1860 Army such as the creeping loading lever, round barrel, and rebated cylinder with the smaller Model 1849 Pocket's size while also offering more firepower per shot than Colt's other pocket models. Given these improvements, this model certainly would have been an excellent sidearm for daily carry by a police officer or anyone else wanting to carry a defensive firearm in the 1860s, and most examples show signs of use unlike this example which remains in absolutely outstanding condition and is complete with a case and accessories. It has a cone front sight, "ADDRESS COL SAML COLT NEW-YORK U.S. AMERICA" on the top of the barrel, "COLTS/PATENT" on the left side of the frame, "36 CAL" and "2" on the left side of the trigger guard, and all matching serial numbers on the various metal components aside from the wedge which is blank. It comes in a fitted hardwood case with an Eley Bros. cap tin, blued Colt patent dual cavity bullet mold, several bullets and balls, a double sided Great Seal of the U.S. themed powder flask, and a cartridge pack. Provenance: The Norm Vegely Collection

Excellent overall with 90% plus of the original blue finish remaining, attractive dark aged patina on the silver, 97% vibrant case colors, minor edge wear, light fading and drag lines on the cylinder, and minimal overall wear from age and storage. The grip is also excellent and has essentially all of the glossy original varnish, sharp edges, and minimal handling marks. Mechanically excellent. The case is fine and has a crack in the upper right corner, fading of the lining, and generally rather minor wear considering its age. The accessories are mostly very fine with minimal wear; the flask and bullet mold retain the vast majority of their original finishes, and the mold has some dings on the sides. This is an extraordinary cased set. Colt Model 1862 Police revolvers, especially standard examples from the Civil War, were generally used in the period and show signs of their age. This revolver remains in extraordinarily high condition and is certainly going to be very, very difficult to improve upon.