*EXTREMELY RARE & SPECTACULAR JOHN ULRICH ENGRAVED & GOLD INLAID DELUXE TAKEDOWN MODEL 1886 LEVER ACTION WINCHESTER.

*EXTREMELY RARE & SPECTACULAR JOHN ULRICH ENGRAVED & GOLD INLAID DELUXE TAKEDOWN MODEL 1886 LEVER ACTION WINCHESTER. SN 152228. Cal. 33 WCF. Lightweight takedown ’86 with 21″ tapered lightweight rnd bbl, integral pedestal front sight with ivory bead and flat top semi-buckhorn rear sight. It has full magazine with takedown feature. Rifle is mounted with spectacular 3X center crotch flame grain American walnut with D-style checkered & carved forearm and capped pistol grip stock with Winchester embossed hard rubber buttplate. Carving consists of large oak leaves & acorns with acorn & ribbon style carving on front of forearm. Bottom of buttstock has factory sling eye with corresponding factory sling eye in forend cap. Left side of lower tang, under the wood, is stamped with the assembly number “23XXX”. This same number is stamped in the top tang channel of the buttstock and, unusually, also has the “XXX”. Normally only the actual assembly number is stamped in the top tang channel. No further disassembly was effected to check for additional matching parts. Receiver, forend cap, takedown ring and chamber area of the bbl are beautifully engraved by Winchester Chief & Master Engraver John Ulrich and signed on the lower tang just behind the trigger opening. Engraving consists of large vignettes of very detailed buck & doe whitetail deer in a forest scene on left side and a standing bull moose in a forest scene on the right side. These vignettes are surrounded by very well executed foliate arabesque and multiple border patterns and are completely outlined in gold wire inlay. Left front flat of receiver has a detailed Moorish pattern. Top edges of the receiver are engraved with snake & dot patterns and the bolt with feather patterns and foliate arabesque patterns. Sides & rear edge of hammer and top tang are engraved to match. Sides and front edge of lever are lightly engraved. Virtually all surfaces on receiver, top tang, bolt, lever, hammer, forend cap and takedown ring are outlined with gold wire inlay. There are gold wire bands at the chamber & muzzle ends of bbl. All screw heads are engraved in foliate patterns. While there are more elaborately engraved Model ’86s in existence, none are more well-executed or accomplished with greater skill & presentation. Accompanied by several letters of correspondence all dated in February & March 1967, between a gentleman by the name of Larry Smith and presumably consignor’s grandfather. Mr. Smith states in a letter dated Feb. 24, 1967 that he had purchased this rifle from Abercrombie & Fitch but could not recall the exact date and that sometime in the early 1940s, probably after 1941, he gave this rifle to consignor’s grandfather as a token of friendship & gratitude. In another letter dated March 1, 1967 he discusses speaking with Charlie Wicks at Abercrombie & Fitch who, reportedly, remembered the rifle and recalled that Mr. Smith purchased it “sometime in the thirties”. Consignor states that this rifle has remained in their family ever since receiving it from Mr. Smith and that it was on loan to and on exhibit at the Cody Firearms Museum, Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, WY, from 1985 until 2011. Additionally accompanied by a Winchester Gun Museum letter which identifies this rifle in caliber 33 with 21″ rnd bbl, takedown, full magazine, rubber shotgun buttplate, fancy pistol grip carved & checkered style “D”, oil finish, screw eyes, number 3 Lyman front sight with $70 #2 engraving and most unusually, states that it had 249 grains of gold and was engraved by John Ulrich. And even more unusually the letter also states that it was shipped on May 16, 1914 to the Winchester Store in New York and sold to A.V. Frost, 594 Fifth Ave., New York, NY on June 18, 1914. There is a distinct probability that the person who received this rifle was in fact the famous Winchester illustrator, A.B. Frost. The “V” as listed in the letter certainly is often mistaken for a “B” and vice-verse. Mr. A.B. Frost had traveled to France where he lived for a number of years studying other impressionist painters and is known to have returned to the United States in 1914. From about 1883 Mr. Frost had lived on his farm in New Jersey and occasionally collaborated with his son, John, on works of art, one of which was sold at a benefit auction in early 1915 in the New York area. Given that Mr. A.B. Frost was so closely associated with Winchester in providing many illustrations for calendar art and cartridge board art it is very logical that such a lavishly decorated rifle would have been presented to him by Winchester. Very few known Winchester rifles are decorated with as much gold as is found on this one. Even the $100 plus engraved rifles rarely had 150 grains of gold as compared to the 249 grains of gold on this rifle. So even though the listed cost of the embellishment of this rifle was only $70 it is apparent that it should have been substantially more. There is also a letter on Olin letterhead, John M. Olin, dated March 9, 1967, Albany, Georgia, wherein Mr. Olin states that he will ask the curator to identify this rifle and communicate the results. The letter is signed “With Kind Regards, Sincerely, John”. Also accompanied by copies of four pages of information contained in an article by James E. Serven that appeared in the March 1972 American Rifleman. PROVENANCE: A.V. Frost; Larry Smith; Cody Firearms Museum; Ely Family & Ely Family Trust. CONDITION: Extremely fine plus, probably unfired. Bbl, receiver, magazine tube & forend cap retain virtually all of their strong orig factory blue with only a hint of sharp edge wear around the magazine tube cap. Scratch on magazine tube and some light surface mars on the magazine tube from unscrewing the takedown feature. Receiver has a small scrape on left side and has faint sharp edge wear. Lever & hammer retain about all of their orig case colors, fading on outer edge of lever. Wood is sound with a very few, very light surface mars and retains virtually all of its orig factory oil finish. Mechanics are crisp, brilliant shiny bore. Loading gate has one small scratch and so may have been loaded at one time. Bolt face is covered in old hard grease and appears to retain about all of its orig blue. This is truly an extraordinary rifle engraved by one of the great masters of all time. 4-42116 JR154 (150,000-250,000)

Auction: Firearms - Fall 2011

Please Note: All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

Image	Lot	Price	Description
	2024	$201,250.00	EXTREMELY RARE & SPECTACULAR JOHN ULRICH ENGRAVED & GOLD INLAID DELUXE TAKEDOWN MODEL 1886 LEVER ACTION WINCHESTER. SN 152228. Cal. 33 WCF. Lightweight takedown ’86 with 21″ tapered lightweight rnd bbl, integral pedestal front sight with ivory bead and flat top semi-buckhorn rear sight. It has full magazine with takedown feature. Rifle is mounted with spectacular 3X center crotch flame grain American walnut with D-style checkered & carved forearm and capped pistol grip stock with Winchester embossed hard rubber buttplate. Carving consists of large oak leaves & acorns with acorn & ribbon style carving on front of forearm. Bottom of buttstock has factory sling eye with corresponding factory sling eye in forend cap. Left side of lower tang, under the wood, is stamped with the assembly number “23XXX”. This same number is stamped in the top tang channel of the buttstock and, unusually, also has the “XXX”. Normally only the actual assembly number is stamped in the top tang channel. No further disassembly was effected to check for additional matching parts. Receiver, forend cap, takedown ring and chamber area of the bbl are beautifully engraved by Winchester Chief & Master Engraver John Ulrich and signed on the lower tang just behind the trigger opening. Engraving consists of large vignettes of very detailed buck & doe whitetail deer in a forest scene on left side and a standing bull moose in a forest scene on the right side. These vignettes are surrounded by very well executed foliate arabesque and multiple border patterns and are completely outlined in gold wire inlay. Left front flat of receiver has a detailed Moorish pattern. Top edges of the receiver are engraved with snake & dot patterns and the bolt with feather patterns and foliate arabesque patterns. Sides & rear edge of hammer and top tang are engraved to match. Sides and front edge of lever are lightly engraved. Virtually all surfaces on receiver, top tang, bolt, lever, hammer, forend cap and takedown ring are outlined with gold wire inlay. There are gold wire bands at the chamber & muzzle ends of bbl. All screw heads are engraved in foliate patterns. While there are more elaborately engraved Model ’86s in existence, none are more well-executed or accomplished with greater skill & presentation. Accompanied by several letters of correspondence all dated in February & March 1967, between a gentleman by the name of Larry Smith and presumably consignor’s grandfather. Mr. Smith states in a letter dated Feb. 24, 1967 that he had purchased this rifle from Abercrombie & Fitch but could not recall the exact date and that sometime in the early 1940s, probably after 1941, he gave this rifle to consignor’s grandfather as a token of friendship & gratitude. In another letter dated March 1, 1967 he discusses speaking with Charlie Wicks at Abercrombie & Fitch who, reportedly, remembered the rifle and recalled that Mr. Smith purchased it “sometime in the thirties”. Consignor states that this rifle has remained in their family ever since receiving it from Mr. Smith and that it was on loan to and on exhibit at the Cody Firearms Museum, Buffalo Bill Historical Center, Cody, WY, from 1985 until 2011. Additionally accompanied by a Winchester Gun Museum letter which identifies this rifle in caliber 33 with 21″ rnd bbl, takedown, full magazine, rubber shotgun buttplate, fancy pistol grip carved & checkered style “D”, oil finish, screw eyes, number 3 Lyman front sight with $70 #2 engraving and most unusually, states that it had 249 grains of gold and was engraved by John Ulrich. And even more unusually the letter also states that it was shipped on May 16, 1914 to the Winchester Store in New York and sold to A.V. Frost, 594 Fifth Ave., New York, NY on June 18, 1914. There is a distinct probability that the person who received this rifle was in fact the famous Winchester illustrator, A.B. Frost. The “V” as listed in the letter certainly is often mistaken for a “B” and vice-verse. Mr. A.B. Frost had traveled to France where he lived for a number of years studying other impressionist painters and is known to have returned to the United States in 1914. From about 1883 Mr. Frost had lived on his farm in New Jersey and occasionally collaborated with his son, John, on works of art, one of which was sold at a benefit auction in early 1915 in the New York area. Given that Mr. A.B. Frost was so closely associated with Winchester in providing many illustrations for calendar art and cartridge board art it is very logical that such a lavishly decorated rifle would have been presented to him by Winchester. Very few known Winchester rifles are decorated with as much gold as is found on this one. Even the $100 plus engraved rifles rarely had 150 grains of gold as compared to the 249 grains of gold on this rifle. So even though the listed cost of the embellishment of this rifle was only $70 it is apparent that it should have been substantially more. There is also a letter on Olin letterhead, John M. Olin, dated March 9, 1967, Albany, Georgia, wherein Mr. Olin states that he will ask the curator to identify this rifle and communicate the results. The letter is signed “With Kind Regards, Sincerely, John”. Also accompanied by copies of four pages of information contained in an article by James E. Serven that appeared in the March 1972 American Rifleman. PROVENANCE: A.V. Frost; Larry Smith; Cody Firearms Museum; Ely Family & Ely Family Trust. CONDITION: Extremely fine plus, probably unfired. Bbl, receiver, magazine tube & forend cap retain virtually all of their strong orig factory blue with only a hint of sharp edge wear around the magazine tube cap. Scratch on magazine tube and some light surface mars on the magazine tube from unscrewing the takedown feature. Receiver has a small scrape on left side and has faint sharp edge wear. Lever & hammer retain about all of their orig case colors, fading on outer edge of lever. Wood is sound with a very few, very light surface mars and retains virtually all of its orig factory oil finish. Mechanics are crisp, brilliant shiny bore. Loading gate has one small scratch and so may have been loaded at one time. Bolt face is covered in old hard grease and appears to retain about all of its orig blue. This is truly an extraordinary rifle engraved by one of the great masters of all time. 4-42116 JR154 (150,000-250,000) Auction: Firearms - Fall 2011 Please Note:* All prices include the hammer price plus the buyer’s premium, which is paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price. The prices noted here after the auction are considered unofficial and do not become official until after the 46th day.

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