EXTRAORDINARY CASED ENGRAVED PAIR OF COLT 3RD MODEL DRAGOON REVOLVERS PRESENTED TO KING VITTORIO EMMANUELE II OF ITALY.

EXTRAORDINARY CASED ENGRAVED PAIR OF COLT 3RD MODEL DRAGOON REVOLVERS PRESENTED TO KING VITTORIO EMMANUELE II OF ITALY. SN 11790 & 11850. Cal. 44. Extremely rare all blue finish on both revolvers with 7-1/2″ oct to rnd bbls, German silver front sights, 1-line New York addresses, one with brackets and one with dashes, with hand-engraved “COLTS PATENT” over a tiny “U.S.” on left side of frames. They have brass trigger guards & backstraps containing spectacular 1-pc ivory grips with usual vertical rammer latches. Frames & bbl lugs have full coverage donut scroll foliate arabesque pattern engraving with deluxe engraved hammers having a wolf’s head on each side of the hammer noses. Number “11790” has an unusual “S” or “8” shape on each side of hammer nose. Number “11790” also has the Coat of Arms of the United States in the form of an American shield on the trigger bow while number “11850” has an oval Coat of Arms divided into four equal sections with a star in the upper left corner with other unknown markings in the other three sections. Backstraps have elaborate fan & feather patterns at tops with engraved shoulders and nearly full coverage foliate arabesque patterns on the backstraps & buttstraps. They have usual 6-shot cylinders with rolled Ranger/Indian fight scenes with #11850 having six crisp safety pins and #11790 having five of the six safety pins crisp. These revolvers were presented by Sanuel Colt probably in an effort to promote sales as was his wont to do throughout his career. Accompanied by their orig, spectacular, feather & flame grain walnut casing with gold-washed brass trim and brass wire inlay in the lid with an empty gold-washed shield in the center. Interior is green velvet lined and French fitted in the bottom for the two revolvers, a fine dbl-sided “COLTS PATENT” Dragoon flask with angle spout and rnd hanger wires high on sides. Also included in a brass 2-cavity bullet mold with bright steel “COLTS PATENT” sprue cutter and “WAT” (William A. Thornton) inspector initials on right side. In addition there is a rosewood mallet and a rosewood & brass tipped cleaning rod. Each corner has a covered compartment, two of which are empty, with one containing a quantity of lead balls and the other an unusual tinned container of Eley Bros. caps and an NRA Silver Medal #438. Additionally accompanied by the NRA certificate for this medal awarding it to these revolvers. This wonderful pair of revolvers is pictured on two full pages in full color, pp. 26-27 of Fine Colts The Dr. Joseph A. Murphy Collection, Wilson. Vittorio (Victor) Emmanuele II was born March 1820, the son of the King of Piedmont Savoy & Sardinia, and replaced his father in July 1849 when his father abdicated the throne after a humiliating military defeat by the Austrians which cost his kingdom several territories. King Emmanuele spent the next twelve years fighting the Austrians, sometimes in alliance with the French & Prussians and in March of 1861 was successful in uniting the entirety of Italy & Sicily and regaining the territories lost in 1849. On March 17, 1861 he was crowned King of Italy and reigned until his death in January 1878. He fathered numerous children by two wives and several mistresses and one of his sons, Umberto, succeeded him upon his death. Given the tumultuous conditions under which King Emmanuele ascended to the throne, it is understandable that Samuel Colt would solicit business from the Italians correctly thinking that a continuation of war was eminent. PROVENANCE: Dr. Joseph A. Murphy Collection; King Vittorio Emmanuele II of Italy; King Umberto of Italy; Dr. J. Rimini, Ambassador to Italy from Uruguay. CONDITION: Revolvers are very fine to extremely fine. They retain strong orig blue especially on frames & bbl lugs. #11850 retains strong bright blue on rnd portion of bbl with some slight thinning and retains about 50% thin orig blue having been lightly cleaned. Cyl markings are strong and overall retains about 85% Ranger/Indian fight scene. #11790 retains about 50% orig blue flaked to a medium patina and retains about 80% thinning orig blue on cyl with strong clear markings and about 95% Ranger/Indian fight scene. Both retain virtually all of their orig silver plating on trigger guards & backstraps with both grips sound & crisp with mellow ivory color. Both rammers & hammers retain strong orig case colors. Case has some minor veneer cracks at each end of the lid, otherwise is completely sound with usual handling & storage marks and retains most of its orig varnish. Orig green velvet covering on bottom is completely intact showing moderate wear and some fraying at edges. Interior is lightly faded in lid and moderately faded in bottom with light soil and some minor chemical spotting. Flask retains about 85% strong orig finish. Mold is crisp & clean with a couple of very minor dents on bottom. Other accessories are very fine to extremely fine. 4-36512 JR154 (400,000-600,000)

Auction: Firearms - Fall 2009

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
	2150	$0.00	EXTRAORDINARY CASED ENGRAVED PAIR OF COLT 3RD MODEL DRAGOON REVOLVERS PRESENTED TO KING VITTORIO EMMANUELE II OF ITALY. SN 11790 & 11850. Cal. 44. Extremely rare all blue finish on both revolvers with 7-1/2″ oct to rnd bbls, German silver front sights, 1-line New York addresses, one with brackets and one with dashes, with hand-engraved “COLTS PATENT” over a tiny “U.S.” on left side of frames. They have brass trigger guards & backstraps containing spectacular 1-pc ivory grips with usual vertical rammer latches. Frames & bbl lugs have full coverage donut scroll foliate arabesque pattern engraving with deluxe engraved hammers having a wolf’s head on each side of the hammer noses. Number “11790” has an unusual “S” or “8” shape on each side of hammer nose. Number “11790” also has the Coat of Arms of the United States in the form of an American shield on the trigger bow while number “11850” has an oval Coat of Arms divided into four equal sections with a star in the upper left corner with other unknown markings in the other three sections. Backstraps have elaborate fan & feather patterns at tops with engraved shoulders and nearly full coverage foliate arabesque patterns on the backstraps & buttstraps. They have usual 6-shot cylinders with rolled Ranger/Indian fight scenes with #11850 having six crisp safety pins and #11790 having five of the six safety pins crisp. These revolvers were presented by Sanuel Colt probably in an effort to promote sales as was his wont to do throughout his career. Accompanied by their orig, spectacular, feather & flame grain walnut casing with gold-washed brass trim and brass wire inlay in the lid with an empty gold-washed shield in the center. Interior is green velvet lined and French fitted in the bottom for the two revolvers, a fine dbl-sided “COLTS PATENT” Dragoon flask with angle spout and rnd hanger wires high on sides. Also included in a brass 2-cavity bullet mold with bright steel “COLTS PATENT” sprue cutter and “WAT” (William A. Thornton) inspector initials on right side. In addition there is a rosewood mallet and a rosewood & brass tipped cleaning rod. Each corner has a covered compartment, two of which are empty, with one containing a quantity of lead balls and the other an unusual tinned container of Eley Bros. caps and an NRA Silver Medal #438. Additionally accompanied by the NRA certificate for this medal awarding it to these revolvers. This wonderful pair of revolvers is pictured on two full pages in full color, pp. 26-27 of Fine Colts The Dr. Joseph A. Murphy Collection, Wilson. Vittorio (Victor) Emmanuele II was born March 1820, the son of the King of Piedmont Savoy & Sardinia, and replaced his father in July 1849 when his father abdicated the throne after a humiliating military defeat by the Austrians which cost his kingdom several territories. King Emmanuele spent the next twelve years fighting the Austrians, sometimes in alliance with the French & Prussians and in March of 1861 was successful in uniting the entirety of Italy & Sicily and regaining the territories lost in 1849. On March 17, 1861 he was crowned King of Italy and reigned until his death in January 1878. He fathered numerous children by two wives and several mistresses and one of his sons, Umberto, succeeded him upon his death. Given the tumultuous conditions under which King Emmanuele ascended to the throne, it is understandable that Samuel Colt would solicit business from the Italians correctly thinking that a continuation of war was eminent. PROVENANCE: Dr. Joseph A. Murphy Collection; King Vittorio Emmanuele II of Italy; King Umberto of Italy; Dr. J. Rimini, Ambassador to Italy from Uruguay. CONDITION: Revolvers are very fine to extremely fine. They retain strong orig blue especially on frames & bbl lugs. #11850 retains strong bright blue on rnd portion of bbl with some slight thinning and retains about 50% thin orig blue having been lightly cleaned. Cyl markings are strong and overall retains about 85% Ranger/Indian fight scene. #11790 retains about 50% orig blue flaked to a medium patina and retains about 80% thinning orig blue on cyl with strong clear markings and about 95% Ranger/Indian fight scene. Both retain virtually all of their orig silver plating on trigger guards & backstraps with both grips sound & crisp with mellow ivory color. Both rammers & hammers retain strong orig case colors. Case has some minor veneer cracks at each end of the lid, otherwise is completely sound with usual handling & storage marks and retains most of its orig varnish. Orig green velvet covering on bottom is completely intact showing moderate wear and some fraying at edges. Interior is lightly faded in lid and moderately faded in bottom with light soil and some minor chemical spotting. Flask retains about 85% strong orig finish. Mold is crisp & clean with a couple of very minor dents on bottom. Other accessories are very fine to extremely fine. 4-36512 JR154 (400,000-600,000) Auction: Firearms - Fall 2009 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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