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Premium Thierry de Maigret
135
-
*A rare and very fine pair of pistols, using fulminate pelle…
See original version (French)
135
-
*A rare and very fine pair of pistols, using fulminate pelle…
See original version (French)
Estimate €20,000 - €25,000
Voluntary lot
Description
*A rare and very fine pair of pistols, using fulminate pellets, by Lelion of Versailles, of the Le Page type from 1810:
Octagonal barrels, slightly flared at the muzzle, in ribbon damask, one greyish, the other with a slight tobacco hue, open-worked on the upper flat surface, extending from the breech to the midpoint, gildedin full relief on the breech blocks, featuring rosettes followed by gilded foliage; the muzzles are gilded and engraved with acanthus leaves and fitted with an adjustable sight; attached breeches, engraved with a fleur-de-lis, the two sloping sides punched, within a rectangle: ‘LELION’ on a gold background, fittedwith a screw, on the side facing the breech plate, allowing the interior to be cleaned; length 24.4 cm, 12-gauge, with extremely fine hairline rifling, known as ‘merveilleuses’ ; finely engraved breech plates, numbered: ‘1’ and ‘2’, also engraved in a matching pattern, fitted with a fixed sight near the breeches.
Firing plates with rounded bodies, engraved on the reverse with hunting hounds, marked: ‘Lelion Versailles’, the hammers’ spurs engraved with foliage; the fulminate cylinders rest on a pan, and the percussion chambers are mounted using the same system as the flintlock mechanisms and held in place by the flintlock springs; adjustable hammers.
Beautiful grey iron mountings, finely chiselled and engraved; trigger guards adorned with landscapes and the head of a deity, the front sections of the hammers cut out and engraved with a winged woman, her arms crossed, with a double mermaid’s tail, crowned with a vase of flowers; two counter-plates engraved with foliage; the centres of the oval caps, raised by a lozenge engraved with a vase, cut-out around the rim; all the screws engraved with foliage.
Cross-shafts: short, without a rod, in veined walnut; chequered handles forming a chequerboard pattern; lower sections carved with three superimposed rosettes, the tops of the caps chiselled with laurel leaves; the backs of the handles adorned with a frieze of laurel leaves, in the centre a gold thumb rest, engraved and marked: ‘Victor Davy’. (One of the thumb rests has been removed).
Total length 38 cm.
Included is a rare brass fulminate pellet dispenser with an octagonal mahogany handle; length 13.5 cm including the ring.
Early Empire period, circa 1812. Very good condition.
It is noticeable that, on this pair of pistols, there are differences in the patina on the metal parts; they were probably separated during a probate in the 19th century, and one was cleaned differently. They were reunited 12 years ago by a collector.
LELION Jacques Philippe, arquebusier and inventor Versailles (1812–1817), 57 Rue de l’Orangerie, then Paris, 67 and later 71 Rue de Richelieu; born in 1795. On 10 November 1826, he was granted a patent for a four-shot carbine or rifle, although this weapon had only a single barrel. Bronze medal at the 1827 exhibition for his invention of a single-barrelled rifle with a rotating cylinder; also awarded a prize in 1834 in Paris.
Victor DAVY: this may refer to a member of the DAVY family of La Pailleterie, known as ‘DUMAS’ (1762–1806), Thomas
Alexandre, a general and father of the novelist Alexandre DUMAS.
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
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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