Christmas comes early at Bonhams

It might fall almost a month before our traditional time of bestowing and receiving gifts, but your Christmas really could come early this year if you go to Bonhams on November 29th. The Antique Arms, Armour and Modern Sporting Guns sale is packed with mouth-watering examples of superb gunmaking, and it’s all rather tempting to say the very least. 

A pair of Purdeys for £37,000?

In the last sale on May 24th a pair of Holland & Holland 12 bore Sporting Model Deluxe single-trigger over-unders had a guide price of £30,000-£40,000, but the hammer eventually dropped at a wallet-busting £52,500.

And a pair of Kell-engraved 12 bore self-opening sidelock ejectors by Purdey reached £37,500 with a guide of £30,000-£40,000. Four outstanding pieces of British sporting craftsmanship all found a new home for a grand total of £90,000. We can only imagine the joy they are bringing to their new owners.

A festive day out

The November auction will take place at the Montpelier Street saleroom just over the road from Harrods, so you really could make this a very special festive Thursday in the West End. We spoke to Patrick Hawes, Head of Modern Sporting Guns, to find out a little more about the potential highlights of this sale. But this comes with a warning; it’s like going to see a puppy, there may be no turning back…

A gun of beauty from Watson Bros.

This stunning gun was completed in 1925 by Watson Bros. Gunmakers of Pall Mall, and it was exquisitely engraved by Harry Kell (1880-1958), one of the biggest names to have ever graced the engraver’s bench. Kell has been described as “The critical link between the standard forms of engraving of the 19th century and today’s artistry.” 

Modern greats like Ken Hunt spent time learning from Kell in the 1950s, and there is little doubt he did provide the bridge between the old and new worlds of gun engraving. With a guide price of £7,000-£9,000 this could be the extremely special treasure you have always sought.

As good as shooting gets

This fine matched pair of 12 bore self-opening sidelock ejector guns by James Purdey & sons are valued at between £40,000 and £60,000. 

They are numbered 18259 & 18259* and are engraved '1' and '2' on the toplevers, ribs and forends. 

The guns were completed in 1966 and 1970 for Monsieur Maxime Magne, of Perigueux, France, and No. 1 was engraved by Foster and No. 2 by Casbard. The original serial numbers for these guns would have been 27318 and 27728, and the current serial numbers were a special request of the buyer.

The guns both sport best bold foliate-scroll engraving, cocking-indicators, highly-figured stocks and chopperlump barrels with engraved game-ribs. Shooting pheasants with them on a crisp November morning would be about as good as shooting gets…

King of the foreshore

This four bore single-barrelled wildfowling hammer gun by Thomas Jackson (no. 1632) weighs a mammoth 15lb 15oz., has a 43 inch barrel and a four-inch chamber. It’s a behemoth and, even if you don’t fancy putting it into action, it’s a wonderful piece of sporting firearm history. The Damascus barrel with faceted breech-section is engraved “T. Jackson, Wigmore St., London” and surrounded by foliate-scroll engraving. The guide price is £7,000-£10,000 and you are getting a lot of gun for your money.

For the small bore fans

We go from one extreme to the other with this lovely little .410 boxlock ejector gun by J. Blanch & son, which weighs just 4lb. 3oz, a quarter of the Jackson four bore! The sides of the action-body are engraved with pheasants and partridges in flight surrounded by foliate-scrollwork, and there is plenty of colour-hardening and a well-figured stock. The 28 inch barrels with a game-rib are engraved ‘J. Blanch & Son, 29 Gracechurch St, London, E.C.’ and this little gem carries a guide price of £3,600-£4,200.

A royal British opportunity

Here’s your chance to buy a pair of 12 bore Royal self-opening sidelock ejector guns completed by Holland & Holland in 1927. The toplevers, ribs and forends are numbered '1' and '2' in gold and they both have best bold foliate-scroll engraving. 

No. 1 weighs 6lb. 11oz. with approximately ¼ and ½ choke and No. 2 comes in at 6lb. 9oz. with Cylinder and Improved Cylinder choke. Both guns have 26½” barrels and 2¾” chambers with well-figured shortened stocks and recoil pads.

They are numbered 31502/4 and come in a leather motorcase with Holland & Holland trade labels. With a very tempting guide price of £10,000-15,000 they look very attractive indeed – as they would in your cabinet or in the field next season.

See the full Bonhams modern sporting gun sale catalogue here.

Written by Will Hetherington, GunsOnPegs Contributing Editor

Will was the editor of the Shooting Gazette, a leading international driven shooting magazine, for 13 years. Having been involved with country sports publishing for a total of 19 years, he is now our Contributing Editor at GunsOnPegs.