Thread: thoughts
View Single Post
  #83  
Old 03-18-2008, 06:25 PM
puffer's Avatar
puffer puffer is offline
Steel
 
Join Date: Mar 2008
Location: Kent wa
Posts: 316
Default Re: thoughts

[quote=Gravy]I'm very partial to British flintlocks and Scottish examples are really quite unique.



I feel that the Scots ( Highlander) pistols,as well as the earlier guns, that they owned, illustrate that we must be careful making generalities as to the decline of "engraving styles etc. I feel that we must also look @ the REGIONAL picture.

Was the engraving being done (@ the same time period )in "Italy", as it was being done in "Germany" etc" ??? Perhaps not.

Using the "Scots" pistol as an example, lets look @ the time period of the Amer. Rev. War. & compare them with British examples & Amer. examples.
Note examples are of guns that were or could be owned by middle or upper middle class individuals.
Scots examples
This pic is of a gun in the NRA Museum ( I have seen it )

Here is a favorite of mine


This gun is one of the more "PLAIN" ones (NOTE - it was made by a British or Lowlander maker)


Finally, here is a "common one"


2. British examples - See earlier posts.
3. American examples ( not British or French imports ) - Please post examples
I have several books with great examples of the above, but pics are copyrighted. See "Steel Canvas The art of American Arms" as a start.

What I have found,is that, it appears that while British "presentation Guns Still had a great amount of "heavy" engraving ( as I showed before) The Engraving & decoration, became "finer" And the American Guns, even the presentation ones, were very simple.

IMHO, this may point to "cultural" preferences. In other words if the income of the clientel was the same, then you catered to what they prefered.
A NOTE on the American guns. Could the reason for the "lack of "engraving & decoration" be because of the American mind set ???

BTW here is a site I Know you have, but missed.
http://www.picturetrail.com/gallery/...037&uid=717149

Puffer
Reply With Quote