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an old rifle with a wooden handle and a wooden barrela fine flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flint flinta very old looking gun that is sitting on a tablea close up of a knife on a white surface
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93 - A magnificent flintlock hunting rifle for a lady or a young …
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Estimate €15,000 - €20,000
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Description
A magnificent flintlock hunting rifle for a lady or a young lad, by de Sainte, the King’s ordinary arquebusier Versailles, of princely or royal provenance: Barrel with two sections, two side panels, round at the top, then round with a sighting band extending to the rear sight, in blued iron, damascened in gold over the first third with foliage, scrollwork, a military trophyand a vase adorned with flowers; it is signed on the band: ?DE SAINTE. ARQUEBUSIER. ORDRE DU ROY ˇ VERSAILLES?; silver front sight surrounded by lightning bolts, the tip damascened in gold; fine silver ‘V’-shaped rear sight, chiselled with flowers and foliage on a gold background; the breech is also engraved with flowers on a gold background; calibre 15 mm. The round-bodied lock plate is chased at the rear with a trophy of arms and signed: ‘?De Sainte Arquebusier, Order of the King, Versailles?; hammer chiselled with flowers and the base of a trophy of arms on a gold background. Silver fittings, hallmarked, cut and chiselled with matching motifs, also on a gold background; ramrod holder and ramrod guide decorated with spiral godronsand gold fillets; the rear of the stock plate is openwork, lined with red velvet, surrounded by a silver frieze studded with gold, as is the cheek piece edged with silver thread braid. The stock is made of burl walnut, carved with foliage scrolls and inlaid with silver; the thumb rest is of gold, engraved with the arms of France; on the left-hand side, the rearof the breech plate, there are traces of a former inventory number, 142?, as well as, along the trigger guard, 330? (possibly royal inventory numbers). Flanged ramrod with a horn tip. Length 126 cm. (Thumb piece previously re-engraved; hammer replaced; the lock plate is engraved with flowers beneath the firing spring, which is unusual; perhaps it underwent restoration in the 19th century or had its flint replaced?). Dated circa 1767/1770. Very good condition. HALLMARKS: charge and discharge marks for Versailles, circa 1768/1774; letter: ‘V’ surmounted by a crowned ‘D’, a date hallmark used by the Versailles goldsmiths’ guild, probably around 1767; maker’s mark: two interlaced ‘8’s, used around 1770 by the Versailles goldsmiths’ guild; this guild operated under the Paris guild’s authority; hallmark for medium-sized pieces: a bell, for the years 1768–1774. De SAINTE Pierre, arquebusier in Paris and Versailles (1747/1788), admitted as master arquebusier, crossbow-maker and gunsmith on 10 October 1747; arquebusier to King Louis XVI in 1763, Versailles; elected juré of the Paris guild; his daughter, Léonie-Émilie, married Nicolas-Noël BOUTET in September 1788. The exceptional quality of this rifle is such that, in the 1912 catalogue, a comparison was drawn with the famous rifle inscribed: ‘BOUILLET À PARIS’, held at the Louvre Museum (M R 435) and bearing the coat of arms of the Count of Artois,Paris 1782/1783, once thought to have been presented by the City of Paris to the Dauphin, father of the future Louis XVI. In that sale, it is worth noting that the rifle was described at the time as having a escutcheon bearing the royal arms of France, which suggeststhat this escutcheon, although not original, was affixed to it in the past. The catalogue for the 1936 sale presented it as a weapon from the royal family’s entourage, as it was described as the ‘bécassinière known as that of Madame de Pompadour’. Although there is currently no formal evidence to confirm these historical attributions, it is nevertheless worth emphasising the possible relevance of a princelyor royal provenance—perhaps Louis XVI (Dauphin before 1774) or Marie-Antoinette, both of whom were very young at that time. PROVENANCE: former Claudius CâTE collection, catalogues of his collection, Lyon, 1912, and of his sale at the Hôtel Drouot, Étienne ADER auction house, 4 December 1936, lot 124, plate XII; sale at the Hôtel Drouot, ADER PICARD TAJAN auction house, 23 March 1973, no. 104 ( at that time, the dog was missing; expert Robert-Jean CHARLES) and sale at the Hôtel Drouot, BOISGIRARD auction house, 10 December 2003, lot 85, WILDENSTEIN collection, then sale by Thierry de MAIGRET, LEMASSON collection, 7 April 2017, Room 1, first session at 7.00 pm, lot 39.
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About the sale Antique weapons, historical memorabilia and decorations
Auction location
Auction time 11/04/2026 at 11:00 AM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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