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LOT 328
Attractive Finely Engraved, Gold and Silver Inlaid,
and French E. Pertuiset Paris Marked Double Action Top Break
Revolver - Serial no. 281, 11 mm CF cal., 5 3/4 inch octagon bbl., blue/gold/
silver inlaid finish, antique ivory grips. Information on E. Pertuiset is difficult to find, but records indicate that he was a weapons inventor active in the immediate post-Civil War era and was most noted for creating explosive fillers for small arms projectiles; reportedly the Russian use of this invention led to the Saint Petersburg
Declaration of 1868 banning
exploding shells of less than 400
grams. Dovetailed blade front sight,
with a light border engraving at the muzzle accented with alternating gold and silver inlaid beads, with fine floral scroll work on multiple
components, “ACIER FONDU” (cast steel) on the left side of the barrel lug among floral scroll engraving, “E. PERTUISET a PARIS” on the right barrel flat, and silver wire inlay on the top strap. Further scroll engraving is present on the frame, with the cylinder
decorated with a mix of engraving, gold and silver bead inlays and gold washed border lines. Fitted with a pair of smooth grips with engraved escutcheons and a
lanyard swivel. Provenance: Gillespie collection.
CONDITION: Very fine, with 70% of the bright original high polish blue finish, showing
areas of brown patina, spotting, and mild handling marks. Some of the bead and wire gold inlays have been lost, and the gold inlay shows wear appropriate to age. The grips are also very
fine, with a few light scuffs and an attractive color and grain. Mechanically excellent. Estimate: 3,000 - 5,500
LOT 329
Cased Devisme Centerfire Revolver - Serial no. 17621, 44 cal., 5 /4 inch round bbl., bright finish, ebony grips.
Louis-François Devisme (active around 1833-1886) is well-known for creating a variety of innovative and often unusual firearms. His revolvers were among the earliest centerfire revolvers and are very robust. Known
Devisme clientèle include high level Confederate generals and politicians like Robert E. Lee and Jefferson Davis, French Emperor Napoleon III,
Queen Victoria, King Luis I of Portugal, and other European nobility, and high end Devisme arms are part of some of the finest private and public collections in the world including in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. These early cartridge revolvers were manufactured from the very end of the 1850s to the 1870s. This revolver has a dovetailed round blade front sight, “Devisme a Paris” in script on top of the barrel, a “crown/AF” indicating production by August Francotte on the right side of the frame lug, “97” and a circled “B” on the bottom of the frame, a full fluted cylinder with “3” on the rear face, a solid raised piece on the top of the breech face at the rear of the top strap (apparently missed being notched for a rear sight), “17621” marked on the breech face, “C” on the left side below the recoil shield, checkered ebony grips, and a lanyard ring on the butt. Includes a hardwood case fitted for the revolver with “AE” in Gothic script inscribed on the lid escutcheon, “DEVISME/A PARIS” in gold on the violet velvet lining, a cleaning rod, and a screwdriver. CONDITION: Fine with bright metal surfaces, minor spots of staining/light pitting, and general light wear overall. The grips are very fine and have crisp checkering and light handling marks. Mechanically excellent. The case is very good and has light age and storage related wear. Provenance: The Dr. Gerald Klaz Collection. Estimate: 1,800 - 2,750
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