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A George Jones majolica game pie dish, cover and liner, late 19th century, the lid surmounted with a fox, dead duck and fern leaves, the base with dead game birds and symbols of hunting interspersed by swags of nets, raised mark to base, 25.5 by 18.5cm.

A gentleman's silver hunting cased, keyless wind pocket watch, Birmingham 1903, made by The Jewellers Association Limited, Johannesburg, the white dial bearing Roman numerals and subsidiary seconds dial.

SAMUEL JOHN EGBERT JONES (1797-1861). Fox hunting with the hounds, signed `S.J.E. Jones` lower centre and dated 1827, oil on canvas, gilt framed, 38 x 55 cm Cost of shipping to UK address £40.95 inc. vat.

A DOULTON LAMBETH GREEN AND TAN SALT GLAZE `DEWAR`S PERTH WHISKY` WATER JUG, applied hunting scene all around with black transfer `By Royal Warrant.... To Her Majesty The Queen.... John Dewar & Sons Limited, Distillers, Perth. N.B.`, H 13 cm Cost of shipping to UK address £16.95 inc. vat.

V.GOLDNER portrait of a gentleman in hunting attire, gouache, signed and dated 1915 to the lower left, 63.5cm x 52.5cm

A George Jones majolica game pie dish, cover and liner, late 19th century, the lid surmounted with a fox, dead duck and fern leaves, the base with dead game birds and symbols of hunting interspersed by swags of nets, raised mark to base, 25.5 by 18.5cm.

A gentleman's silver hunting cased, keyless wind pocket watch, Birmingham 1903, made by The Jewellers Association Limited, Johannesburg, the white dial bearing Roman numerals and subsidiary seconds dial.

A GENTLEMAN`S UNMARKED YELLOW GOLD HUNTING CASED POCKET WATCH, the white enamel dial with Arabic numerals and outer second numerals, the movement case inscribed `Felipe Heght Geneve`, in a foliate engraved case

A GENTLEMAN`S 18K YELLOW GOLD HALF HUNTING-CASED POCKET WATCH, the white enamel dial with Roman numerals and subsidiary seconds dial, the dial cover with blue Roman numerals, the case back monogrammed, attached to a 15ct yellow gold chain with attached V Thaler gold coin. See illustration

A GENTLEMAN`S SILVER HUNTING CASED POCKET WATCH, the white enamel dial with Roman numerals, the verge movement inscribed `French, London 2909`, the case hallmarked London 1815, with a cut steel watch key. See illustration

A GENTLEMAN`S 18CT YELLOW GOLD HUNTING-CASED POCKET WATCH, the white enamel dial with Roman numerals and subsidiary seconds dial inscribed `Louis Matile Locle`, in a foliate engraved case

A GENTLEMAN`S UNMARKED YELLOW GOLD HUNTING-CASED POCKET WATCH, the white enamel dial with Roman numerals and subsidiary seconds dial, inscribed `Elgin`, in a foliate engraved case and one other 18k yellow gold ladies half hunting-cased pocket watch (2)

A GENTLEMAN`S 18CT YELLOW GOLD HALF HUNTING-CASED POCKET WATCH, the white enamel dial with Roman numerals and subsidiary seconds dial, inscribed `J W Benson, London`, the outer dial cover with blue Roman numerals in a foliate engraved case and one other similar 18k open-face pocket watch (2)

HUNTING INTEREST: A BI-COLOURED GOLD HUNTING HORN BAR BROOCH, set to the centre with a rose-cut diamond and ruby cabochon fox`s head and another similar yellow gold fox head stock-pin (2). See illustration

AN UNMARKED YELLOW GOLD HUNTING STOCKPIN modelled as a saddled-up horse with ruby cabochon eyes, the rose gold pin as a hunting crop, modelled with a jockey`s hat, 4.2cm wide (c.6.3 grams all in)

Lillian F. Stack - A hunting dog, pencil, signed and dated 1887, 31 x 43 cm; Cartoon - cruelty to animals, pen and ink, 19 x 16 cm; Manner of Kemp Welch - two horses, watercolour, 16 x 24 cm (3)

A 19th century copper and brass hunting horn

A 19th century copper and brass hunting horn in curled form

A folding wood and brass handle hunting knife, two Dormer Drills fold up tools, a Wilkinson Sword file and nail cutter in leather sheath, an adjustable whistle, a 5 France pen knife, and a Dalvey Voyageur Clock by Grants of Dalvey

A quantity of pictures to include an original watercolour of a winter landscape, indistinctly signed L. Mannion, an engraving titled 'The South View of St James's Palace' and two hunting prints after F.C Turner and engraved by G. & C Hunt titled 'Vale of Aylesbury steeple chase' plates 1 and 3, all framed and glazed. (4)

A 19th century handworked tapestry, depicting a hunting scene, in rosewood frame. 15.5 ins x 19 ins, excluding frame. CONDITION REPORT: Generally very good condition with no damage, repairs or restoration. The frame is in good order with only a minor veneer loss to the top right hand corner and another small one to the left hand edge. These are fairly insignificant.

Three handcoloured hunting prints. 10 ins x 8 ins, each in soldered metal frame.

A "La Captivante Prismoid Binocula", together with three pairs of opera glasses, one of which is decorated with a hunting scene.

Five silver napkin rings, one embossed with a hunting scene.

Second World War black painted tin helmet, dated 1939, together with a pair of binoculars with broad arrow mark, two hunting horns and sundry militaria

Good quality late 19th century Scandinavian hunting knife with engraved silver mounts, barrel-type birch handle, straight single-edged blade marked - A. A., in silver mounted carved wooden sheath with leather and silver clasp, 21cm overall

Traditional Marstons Hand Pull Beer Pump engine for counter mounting. Hunting scenes on original off white 10 inch handle. Inner plate reads `Burton Best Bitter`.

Three handcoloured hunting prints. 10 ins x 8 ins, each in soldered metal frame.

A 19th century handworked tapestry, depicting a hunting scene, in rosewood frame. 15.5 ins x 19 ins, excluding frame. CONDITION REPORT: Generally very good condition with no damage, repairs or restoration. The frame is in good order with only a minor veneer loss to the top right hand corner and another small one to the left hand edge. These are fairly insignificant.

Second World War black painted tin helmet, dated 1939, together with a pair of binoculars with broad arrow mark, two hunting horns and sundry militaria

BorderArts hunting figurines mounted on wooden bases with a Beswick dog heavily repaired.

A pair of shell cameo earrings, the oval panels each carved with the profile... A pair of shell cameo earrings, the oval panels each carved with the profile of a lady within a rope twist border, with screw fittings , 1.9cm long; a single shell cameo earring; a shell cameo brooch, the oval panel carved with the profile of a lady, 2.2cm long; a further shell cameo; a garnet cross pendant, the Latin cross set throughout with rose cut garnet, 3.5cm long; and a hunting horn stick pin, 5.3cm long Condition All pieces with wear commensurate with age and use

A FINE GERMAN PRINCELY HUNTING-SWORD, MID-19TH CENTURY with straight blade etched and gilt with scrolls and emblems of the chase on a blued panel over its lower half on both sides, etched with the cutler`s signature "G.H. Kohl in Stuttgart" on the back-edge, gilt-brass hilt cast in relief, including shell-guard with the owner`s monogram "CFzH" applied in silver, knuckle-guard with the terminals formed as deers` hooves, staghorn grip-scales retained by rivets on rosette washers, and in its original leather-covered wooden scabbard with gilt-brass locket and chape decorated with bands of leaf ornament, with provision for a by-knife (missing), and the locket stamped "Kohl Stuttgart" 55.2 cm; 21¾ in blade

A FINE GERMAN DRESS HUNTING-SWORD AND COMPANION BALDRICK (GALABANDELIER), SILVER MAKER`S MARK OF STROBLBERGER, MÜNCHEN, LATE 19TH/EARLY 20TH CENTURY with burnished blade etched and gilt with hunting trophies and scrolls on a blued panel on both sides, German silver hilt cast in relief, including fluted shell-guard, the quillon terminals formed respectively as differing dogs` heads, the pommel en suite, staghorn grip studded with German silver acorns, and in its original leather-covered wooden scabbard also mounted in German silver, the locket with maker`s stamp (by-knife missing); together with a dress baldrick, of black patent leather bordered with patterned silver wire lace, with elaborate full German silver mounts in the manner of the German rococo revival, including pricker pendant from a large stag`s head boss cast in the round, and with the arms of the Princes Hohenlohe-Langenburg cast within a circlet bearing the motto "Ex Flammis Orior" and surmounted by a fürstenhut 51 cm; 20 in blade (2) The galabandelier would have been worn with the full dress uniform of a senior official of the Princely Hunt

A RARE OVER-AND-UNDER WHEEL-LOCK PISTOL, NUREMBERG, CIRCA 1585-90 with swamped barrels, the lower octagonal, the upper formed in two stages and struck with Nuremberg mark and both the serpent mark and initials of the barrelmaker Peter Danner (Neue Støckel 4251), large lock with plain flat plate struck with Nuremberg mark and maker`s mark of Hans (2) Stopler (Neue Støckel 1056/8), carrying two mechanisms released by a single trigger, the wheel-covers en suite, fitted with sliding pan-covers each engraved with a demon mask and the dogs each engraved with two marine monsters, fruitwood full stock inlaid over its length with a series of engraved staghorn plaques in fields of ball-flower scrollwork segmented by inlaid horn lines and engraved bands, including a pair of human grotesques about the barrel tang, a bear-hunting scene over the reverse side, involving a mounted huntsman armed with a sword, the huntsman pursued in turn by a lion, inlaid ball pommel decorated with an alternating pattern of differing grotesque masks each within a rollwerk cartouche, and fitted with iron belt hook, baluster trigger and moulded iron trigger-guard (both safety-catches and one pan-cover release missing, the fore-end chipped ahead of the lock and towards the muzzles, the plaque over the ramrod channel missing, the fore-end cap, the pommel roundel , one inlaid mask and the ramrod additionally all missing) 48.9 cm; 19 ¼ in Two wheel-lock pistols each bearing the marks of Peter Danner and those of the Stopler family of Nuremberg are preserved in the Rothschild Collection at Waddesdon Manor: for a commentary on these and for a general survey of firearms attributed to these two makers see C. Blair 1974, cat.nos. 121 and 122. Blair tentatively attributes the Stopler spur mark to Wolf Stopler, citing Johan F. Støckel; the same version of this mark is attributed in Heer`s Neue Støckel to Hans(2) Stopler. The Nuremberg city archive for 1583 records a dispute between Peter Danner and the widow of his brother Hans over their joint use of the Danner serpent mark. The Nuremberg Council ruled, subject to conditions, that she and her brother-in-law should difference the mark by adding their respective initials. The addition of the maker`s initials supposes the likelihood that their presence post-dates 1583, although this cannot be ascribed with certainty.

A FINE AND VERY RARE TWO-SHOT SUPERIMPOSED-LOAD WHEEL-LOCK PISTOL, NUREMBERG, CIRCA 1585 with two-stage barrel with swamped muzzle and the breech struck with both Nuremberg mark and that of the unidentified maker, a rampant beast, probably a unicorn, the lock with plain flat plate struck with Nuremberg mark and a scissors mark including the initials CS (Neue Støckel 2303), the plate extended forward of the dog-spring, fitted on the inside with a tubular priming-channel linking a vent in the front wall of the pan with a vent for the primary charge concealed just forward of the barrel girdle, with single-trigger mechanism, no provision for a mechanised cut-off, a pierced engraved iron plate fitted over the wheel, safety-catch, sliding pan-cover (release missing) and the dog engraved with a monster and a grotesque, with fruitwood full stock inlaid over its full length with a series of engraved staghorn plaques arranged within horn segmental lines and stringing, including a grotesque mask set between a pair of rollwerk plaques about the barrel tang, the contemporary figures of both a lady and a gentleman standing respectively within ball-flower panels over the butt and forward of the trigger-guard, a pair of monsters towards the muzzle, a deer-hunting scene over the reverse side, involving a mounted sportsman armed with a sword and a huntsman armed with a spear, and ball pommel decorated with a segmented pattern of alternating grotesque masks and capped by a horn roundel engraved with a cavalry officer, fitted with engraved horn ramrod-pipe and fore-end cap, the former decorated with a grotesque mask, baluster trigger, moulded iron trigger-guard, and original iron-tipped ramrod (belt hook and one horn plaque each missing) 49.5 cm; 19 ½ in The vent for the second charge is positioned conventionally at the breech, within a recessed small panel with dovetailed edges. The recess was originally intended to receive a hand-inserted cover to form a cut-off over the vent. The cover (now missing) was intended to slide between the breech wall and the inner face of the pan, and would have been suspended from a cord or short chain corresponding with the existing small staple set into the stock on the opposite side. The length of the iron portion of the ramrod indicates the correct seating depth for the primary charge. Surviving examples of 16th century superimposed-load firearms built on a single lock carrying a single mechanism are particularly rare, which suggests a historical preference for the more frequently evidenced second mechanism. The barrelmaker`s mark compares closely with another, identifiable as a unicorn, also in conjunction with a Nuremberg mark and found on an over-and-under wheel-lock pistol in the former Imperial collection in Vienna (A577): see H. Schedelmann 1972, p.28, pl. 49, the marks shown in detail. The maker`s mark on the lock is attributed mistakenly in Neue Støckel both as unidentified and as the mark of Georg (Jörg) Schneider of Nuremberg, both references share the single number 2303. Another example of this mark is found on the lock of a wheel-lock gun also in the former Hapsburg collection in Vienna (WS.D.285); further examples are found on the locks of both guns and pistols in the Royal Armouries, Leeds (XII.720), the Royal Armoury, Madrid (RA.K76f) and in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (MM.04,165): op.cit. , p. 68 (mark illustrated).

A PAIR OF SOUTH GERMAN LONG WHEEL-LOCK HOLSTER PISTOLS, CIRCA 1660 each with slender tapering barrel cut over its full length with a very narrow medial rib flanked over the breech by a pair of matching short ribs, plain lock retained by three side-nails and drawn-out to a rounded tail, the wheel fitted under the lower edge of the pan and additionally retained by a single small bracket, sliding pan-cover with button release and the dog-spring bridle decorated with a pair of scallop shells chiselled in low relief, each with fruitwood full stock, carved fluted fore-end bordered at its rear by a carved pattern of narrow flutes and ribs heightened at either end by a row of pewter nails, the respective stocks carved with differing stag-hunting scenes in low relief opposite the locks and with differing sporting figures en suite behind the barrel tangs, each inlaid with mother-of-pearl rosette washers under the side-nails, the butt inlaid with pewter ropework in imitation of a short-spurred pommel and inlaid with interlaced patterns of scrolling pewter tendrils carrying varieties of engraved mother-of-pearl flowerheads, the trigger-guard, ramrod-pipe and fore-end cap all of iron, and one pistol retaining its original ramrod (the stocks each with light worm damage throughout, one stock chipped slightly on one side of the fore-end, the other chipped extensively ahead of the lock, with shrinkage about the lock and with a repaired crack at the wrist. Several inlaid plaques missing from each stock, one ramrod missing, the other incomplete) 65.5 cm; 25 ½ in (2) The carved and inlaid treatment of the stocks closely resembles the work of the stockmakers of Schwäbish-Gmund. The figural subjects appear to be inspired directly from original engravings by Jost Amman, published in his Kunstbüchlin in 1599, and are consequently shown in late 16th century dress.

AN EXTREMELY RARE GERMAN COMBINED HUNTING-SWORD AND WHEEL-LOCK PISTOL, THIRD QUARTER OF THE 17TH CENTURY the blade and the pistol each circa 1600; the blade long, straight and double-edged, formed with a full-length medial ridge on both sides, tapering to a very narrow point, decorated on one side at the base with an etched panel involving an eagle, the opposite side with a corresponding longer panel filled with trophies-of-war, the hilt formed of a short moulded iron crosspiece fitted with buckhorn quillons capped by iron discs, with a guard of matching construction projecting from the intended outer face, and grip of natural staghorn with iron ferrule and cap pommel , fitted with a boxed back-action wheel-lock mechanism on one side at the base of the blade, the lock-plate fitted with sliding pan-cover, trigger-lever, external wheel retained by a chamfered ring and the dog-spring and its bridle each decorated with delicate mouldings, with slender barrel formed in two stages with moulded muzzle and medial girdle, and the barrel tang of boxed construction and also forming a vented breech chamber: in its original leather-covered wooden scabbard with iron suspension hook and chape (the hilt has been disassembled, presumably for cleaning, and re-assembled incorrectly with the crosspiece now reversed; one side-nail for the lock mechanism missing). 87.4cm; 34 3/8 in blade The form of the blade and its etched decoration each indicate that the blade dates from the beginning of the 17th century. Similarly the configurations of both the pistol barrel and its lock mechanism are characteristic of types fitted to bladed combination weapons dating from the start of the century. Etched blades of closely comparable form and each fitted with a wheel-lock pistol are found on two Augsburg combination sword-canes, one of which is in the Musée de l`Armée, Paris, and the other in a private collection in the U.S.A: see Hayward 1980, pp. 9, 11, figs. 13, 14. It would seem probable that the present blade and its pistol were originally intended to be concealed within a cane and fitted with a decorated handle comparable with the examples cited. Further examples are in the National Museum and the Tøjhusmuseum, Copenhagen, and in the Wallace Collection, London. It would appear most likely, therefore, that the blade and the pistol were selected for subsequent re-use within the third quarter of the 17th century, when hilts of this type became fashionable, for reasons of expediency and the deferment of added expense. Another legitimate example of the expedient marriage of blades and hilts from differing periods is recorded in the instance of a hunting sword in the Royal Armouries Collection, Leeds, bearing the name of the Landleutenant of Stadtamhof (No. IX-139); the hilt of this sword dates from circa 1550 and the blade, etched with a Gregorian calendar, is attributed to circa 1686: see H.L. Blackmore 1971, p.17, pl.9.

A FINE PAIR OF BOHEMIAN FLINTLOCK HOLSTER PISTOLS BY LEOPOLD BECHER, CIRCA 1730 with sighted barrels lightly swamped towards the muzzles, signed on the ribs, the respective breeches decorated with opposing classical warrior busts chiselled in low relief within pounced recessed cartouches, together with maker`s stamps lined in gilt-copper in the Madrid style and set within raised shaped panels at the rear (Neue Støckel 38, together with a second unrecorded stamp, a dog), the barrel tangs engraved correspondingly with a further opposing pair of classical warrior busts, with bevelled locks chiselled in low relief, principally within a series of recessed panels, each decorated with a recumbent figure within a trophy-of-war and with a boar`s head hunting trophy at the rear, figured walnut full stocks carved in low relief over their lengths, decorated with complex interlaced scrollwork mouldings about the barrel tangs and behind the ramrod-pipes, full gilt-bronze mounts finely cast in relief, comprising spurred pommels decorated with figural trophies-of-war en suite with the locks, also involving pairs of demon masks and each with demon mask cap cast prominently in relief, solid side-plates decorated with landscape vignettes involving combatant horsemen in early 18th century dress, trigger-guards centring on cartouches filled with warrior busts, pairs of faceted ramrod-pipes, one pair carrying its original ramrod with gilt-bronze cap (the other ramrod associated), and escutcheons formed as rollwerk cartouches each filled with the figure of Diana the Huntress 52.1 cm; 20½ in (2) Leopold Becher, active circa 1725-50, ranks foremost among the Carlsbad school of makers of luxurious firearms and his works equal those of the best gunmakers in Vienna and Prague within the second quarter of the 18th century. In 1726 Becher was appointed court gunmaker to General Prince Johann Georg Christian Lobkowicz at Schloss Raudnitz (Roudnice). Firearms by Leopold Becher are today represented in the former Imperial Collection in Vienna, in the Danish Royal Collection and in the majority of the surviving princely and noble gunrooms of Central Europe. The inventory of the former Pfalz-Zweibrücken Gewehrkammer lists eleven pieces by Becher. See Hayward Vol 1 1963, pp.129-131; also see Schedelmann 1972, p. 220 for a listing of known works, colour plate XXIV.

A RARE 15-BORE DUTCH FLINTLOCK FOWLING-PIECE BY I.(JAN) VAN WYCK A UTRECHT, CIRCA 1690 in the Parisian fashion, with sighted long tapering barrel signed on the flat, the latter full-length and struck with Utrecht mark at the breech, decorated with finely engraved scrolling foliage and a marine monster, and with a pair of warriors engraved on raised panels at the base, the barrel tang engraved en suite, signed rounded lock finely engraved with a deer-hunting scene within a scrollwork field, figured walnut full stock finely carved with a series of mouldings and scrollwork patterns about the barrel tang, at both ends of the trigger-guard and about the ramrod-pipe, the latter involving monsters` head terminals, with full iron mounts comprising butt-plate with engraved long tang formed as a serpent giving issue to scrollwork and an exotic bird, side-plate pierced and chiselled with a scrolling design involving three monsters, engraved moulded trigger-guard decorated on the bow with an engraved figure in combat with a monster, engraved trigger-plate, four strongly moulded baluster ramrod-pipes, and chiselled heart-shaped escutcheon suspended within a pierced scrollwork frame involving addorsed monsters joined at their mouths by a swag (the comb of the butt repaired, the butt-plate tang rising, the ramrod-pipe finial and the ramrod each missing) 124.5 cm; 49 in barrel The engraved and chiselled decoration and the elaborate carved treatment of stock are closely inspired by the engravings of Claude Simonin, published in Paris in 1684 under the title "Plusiers Pieces Et Ornements D`arquebuzerie ……. ". See Grancsay 1970, pp.73, 78, 79. Johan Jaspersz van Wijk , variously signed Jean de Wyck, Jan van Wyck or Wijck, was one of the foremost Utrecht gunmakers. He was born in the 1660`s and is believed to have died in 1729. Van Wijk is recorded in the Utrecht city archives as a gunmaker and stockmaker, gaining an associated membership of the Smiths` Guild in 1682. For an account of this maker and of his recorded works see Hoff 1978, pp.127-130. Also see de Vries & Martens 2006,p.324

A FINE 23-BORE GERMAN (THURINGIAN) WHEEL-LOCK SPORTING RIFLE, CIRCA 1660-70 built on an earlier swamped octagonal rifled barrel signed and dated "Friden Pucksen Hans Ruhr Coburgk (sic) 1650", struck with a mark towards the breech, decorated over the breech and about the sights with finely engraved bands of scrolls and flowers, the engraving about the back-sight also enclosing the barrelmaker`s monogram HR (Neue Støckel 953) and the back-sight formed with a single pierced shaped folding leaf, finely engraved flat lock decorated with a fanciful flower-filled landscape including a sportsman shooting a running stag, iron wheel-cover pierced and engraved with a rollwerk design carrying a Goddess mask and a pair of winged putti masks, fitted with sliding pan-cover with rosette button release and the dog decorated with a marine monster and a pierced dragon, walnut full stock inlaid over its entire length with running patterns of iron wire scrollwork heightened with minute iron nails and carrying a series of iron plaques finely engraved en suite with the barrel and the lock, including large flowerheads, a pair of monsters`head scrolls about the barrel tang, a crowned harpy opposite the lock, putto masks within complex enclosures of scrollwork both on the cheek-piece on the right-hand side of the butt, the rear portion of the stock additionally carved and pricked with small scrollwork designs in low relief and heightened with small iron nails, with thumb-rest and patch-box cover en suite, the latter inlaid with an engraved dragon plaque en suite with the dog, and fitted with iron butt-plate, pierced engraved iron trigger-guard, fore-end cap, and iron-capped ramrod (ramrod-pipe missing) 82cm; 32 ¼ in barrel Hans Ruhr is recorded in 1641 as Court Gunmaker (presumably to the court of Friedrich Wilhelm II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg) but without membership of the Gunmakers` Guild; Ruhr died in 1657. The predominant themes within the engraved and inlaid decoration (the Thuringian hunting subject aside) are closely inspired by the respective engravings of the Paris gunmaker François Marcou and those of the engraver C. Jacquinet , the latter after the original designs of the royal gunmakers Thuraine and Le Hollandois. The title page of Marcou`s series of 16 engravings is dated 1657, the Thuraine and Le Hollandois engravings were possibly first published about this time also, prior to the known edition dated 1660. See Lenk 1965, p. 85 and Grancsay 1970, pp. 9-10

A FINE 26-BORE GERMAN (THURINGIAN) WHEEL-LOCK SPORTING RIFLE CIRCA, 1660-70 built on an earlier rifled swamped octagonal barrel signed and dated "Friden Pücksen Hans Ruhr Coburgk (sic) 1650", decorated with finely engraved bands of flowers and scrolls at the breech and about both the fore-sight and the back-sight, the engraving about the back-sight also enclosing the engraved maker`s monogram HR (Neue Støckel 953) and the back-sight formed with a single pierced shaped folding leaf, finely engraved flat lock decorated with a fanciful flower-filled landscape including a sportsman shooting a stag, fitted with iron wheel-cover pierced and engraved with a rollwerk design issuant from a grotesque mask and carrying a pair of winged putti masks, sliding pan-cover with rosette button release, and the dog decorated with a marine monster and a pierced dragon, walnut full stock inlaid over its entire length with running patterns of brass wire scrollwork heightened with minute brass nails, carrying a series of brass plaques finely engraved en suite with the barrel and the lock, including large flowerheads, a pair of monsters`head scrolls about the barrel tang, a stag-shooting scene opposite the lock, the mounted figure of a general on the cheek-piece and a boar-hunting vignette on the opposite side, the rear portion of the stock additionally carved and pricked with small scrollwork designs in low relief and picked-out in small brass nails, the patch-box cover carved and inlaid en suite, and fitted with brass butt-plate, pierced engraved iron trigger-guard, and engraved brass ramrod-pipe (the fore-end repaired at the muzzle, the fore-end cap and ramrod missing) 81.9 cm; 32¼ in barrel Hans Ruhr is recorded in 1641 as Court Gunmaker (presumably to the court of Friedrich Wilhelm II, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg) but without membership of the Gunmakers` Guild; Ruhr died in 1657. The predominant themes within the engraved and inlaid decoration (the Thuringian hunting subjects aside) are closely inspired by the respective engravings of the Paris gunmaker François Marcou and the engraver C.Jacquinet, the latter after the original designs of the royal gunmakers Thuraine and Le Hollandois. The title page of Marcou`s series of 16 engravings is dated 1657, the Thuraine and Le Hollandois engravings were possibly first published about this time also, prior to the known edition dated 1660. See Lenk 1965, p.85 and Grancsay 1970, pp.9-10

A RARE VIENNESE FLINTLOCK GARNITURE OF FIREARMS BY IOHANN ADAM GRÄZL (1), COMPRISING A PAIR OF HOLSTER PISTOLS AND A PAIR OF 21-BORE FOWLING-PIECES, CIRCA 1730 the pistols each with lightly swamped blued barrel signed in gold on the sighting rib, decorated with an engraved gold female bust within a gold scrollwork pattern inlaid over the breech, gold-lined vent, silver fore-sight (one missing), and engraved gilt-brass back-sight straddling the breech and barrel tang, bevelled lock signed "Iohann Adam Gräzl" behind the cock and inscribed "In Wienn" between the steel-spring, cut with trophies of Victory involving a Turk`s head laid before a classical warrior on a contrasting incised matted ground, and the cock and the steel decorated with an interlace of strapwork and scrolls chiselled on a pounced matted ground, figured walnut full stock carved with raised mouldings in low relief, including elaborate scrollwork patterns about the barrel tang, the trigger-guard and the ramrod-pipe, full brass mounts fire-gilt and cast in low relief, comprising spurred pommel decorated with scrollwork patterns enclosing a pair of female busts en suite with the breech and fitted with shaped domed strapwork cap decorated en suite with the cock and the steel, side-plate pierced with an interlaced pattern of strapwork scrolls and involving a sportsman at rest with his dog, the trigger-guard and ramrod-pipes decorated with palm branches and scrolls on a matted ground, the escutcheon formed as a further bust medallion within a pierced frame of scrolls and palm foliage, fitted with horn fore-end cap, and each retaining its original horn-tipped ramrod. The fowling-pieces each with blued lightly swamped long barrel of "Spanish" form, with the maker`s copper-lined stamps set within a frame of gold scrollwork, silver "spider" fore-sight, engraved barrel tangs numbered 1 & 2 respectively, bevelled lock engraved with a boar-hunting scene involving a sportsman in contemporary dress, signed "Adam Gräzl" behind the cock and inscribed "In Wienn" between the steel-spring, and the cock and the steel decorated en suite with the pistols, figured walnut half-stock carved with a series of decorative mouldings also en suite with the pistols, with fire-gilt mounts decorated with a pattern identical to the pistols, one fitted with a pierced engraved barrel band (the other missing), engraved fire-gilt trigger-plate, and moulded horn fore-end cap (ramrods missing) the pistols: 54.6 cm; 21 ½ in, the guns: 116cm; 45 5/8 in barrels (4) Garnitures of firearms including a pair of pistols are rare outside of ancestral gunrooms and institutional collections. Gräzl`s stamps inset in the Spanish fashion on the breeches of the fowling-pieces appear to be unrecorded. The first involves his name arranged in two tiers beneath a crown, spelt GRA/TZL; the second is a leaping horse.

A 31-BORE GERMAN WHEEL-LOCK SPORTING RIFLE, THE STOCK WITH MAKER`S INITIALS MS AND FINELY INLAID WITH HUNTING SUBJECTS AFTER JAN VAN DER STRAAT, CIRCA 1590-1600 with octagonal sighted barrel swamped at the muzzle, rifled with six grooves and the breech cut with the conjoined letters HB, flat lock struck with a shield-shaped mark, a pair of crossed pistols with three clusters of ball (similar to Neue Støckel 5733), and fitted with wheel-bracket pierced with a chamfered heart-shaped ring and sliding pan-cover with button release, fruitwood full stock profusely decorated over its entire length with finely engraved horn plaques, formed as a series of hunting subjects involving figures in contemporary dress, both mounted and on foot, including a continuous woodland frieze inhabited by hares, boar, deer and foxes all pursued by hounds along the length of the fore-end on both sides, the scene on the right-hand side also involving a camel and that on the left expanded opposite the lock to include a horseman killing a boar, the butt decorated over the full length of the underside with a series of pierced rollwerk plaques involving grotesque masks and dogs` heads, the pierced figures of a huntsman and of a falconer, birds-of-prey, and a vignette involving a hare and a galloping stallion, the upper surfaces of the butt decorated with the hunting friezes continued in two panels, one involving a lion and a bear, inlaid with an elaborate bear-hunting scene over the cheek-piece, a pair of gamebird plaques inlaid about the barrel tang and enclosing a smaller plaque engraved with the stockmaker`s initials "M.S", with patch-box cover veneered in horn and engraved with deer and a hare pursued by hounds (the rear plate missing), and the entire inlaid scheme arranged within horn segmental lines, fitted with iron trigger-guard, a horn plaque over the ramrod aperture, and this, together with the horn ramrod-pipe and the fore-end cap, engraved with scrollwork patterns en suite with the plaques at the rear borders (the butt-plate undecorated, probably replaced, the ramrod missing). 87 cm; 34¼ in barrel The inlaid hunting subjects are closely inspired by the engravings of the Flemish artist Jan van der Straat, called Stradanus (1523-1605): the horses, hounds and the other animals conspicuously so. While none of the inlaid scenes are taken directly from the engravings it is nonetheless clear that the stockmaker has adapted some of the original scenes and many of the individual engraved subjects to suit his purposes, the bear-hunting scene on the cheek-piece for example draws on an engraved scene involving the killing of a stag. The van der Straat engravings also notably included exotic beasts, specifically the bears, camels and lions present on this stock. After 1567 van der Straat executed his series of hunting-themed designs for tapestries intended for the Villa Poggio a Caiano of Cosimo I de`Medici, Grand duke of Tuscany; engravings of these were published circa 1574-76. Two further series of his hunting engravings (44 and 61 prints respectively) were first published in 1578, with subsequent editions widely circulated.

A FINE PAIR OF 36-BORE VIENNESE FLINTLOCK SPORTING RIFLES MADE FOR A PRINCE OF THE HOUSE OF HOHENZOLLERN, BY CASPAR ZELNER, CIRCA 1725 each with swamped octagonal barrel rifled with seven grooves, signed in gold within a gold linear panel, this in turn extending from a pattern of interlaced scrollwork inlaid in gold over the breech, gilt-brass fore-sight fitted within a matching gold scrollwork pattern, gilt-brass back-sight with one folding leaf and finely chiselled with a small scrollwork design framing a bust portrait medallion, that of a Prinz and a Prinzessin respectively, and one barrel retaining most of its original blued finish, the barrel tangs cut with scrolls and numbered 1&2 in stylised scrollwork numerals, each with bevelled lock signed in miniscules behind the cock, inscribed "In Wienn" between the arms of the steel-spring, the respective locks decorated with differing two-part deer-hunting scenes finely chiselled in low relief on a matted ground, the cock en suite and the steel and the top-jaw of the cock each chiselled with scrolls, figured walnut full stock carved with a series of decorative mouldings in low relief, the butt with raised cheek-piece and finely carved on both sides with delicate relief designs of interlaced C-scrolls, inset with gilt-brass relief scrollwork plaques about the barrel tang and at the base of the cheek-piece, each inhabited by hares and hounds, a further scrollwork plaque inset on the underside of the butt, involving a bust portrait, that of a Prinz and Prinzessin respectively, the respective patch-box covers encased in gilt-brass decorated with differing stag-hunting scenes en suite with the locks, with elaborate full gilt-brass mounts finely cast in low relief, also en suite with the locks and the inset series of plaques, the respective butt-plates and trigger-guards with complemental differences, one butt-plate involving the engraved seated figure of a Prinzessin and a doe, the figures of Diana and Cupid in low relief within the upper tang, the other engraved with a Prinz and a stag, the figure of Acteon in relief above, the respective trigger-guards each with a corresponding portrait figure cast in low relief on the bow and a bust portrait medallion at the finial, each with solid side-plate decorated with a deer-hunting scene involving a female figure in contemporary hunting costume, engraved faceted ramrod-pipes, the respective rearward pipes also cast with male and female portrait medallions, gilt-brass fore-end caps with further deer-hunting scenes cast in relief, again different, each with double set trigger on an engraved iron plate, and gilt-brass escutcheon cast with the quartered arms of Hohenzollern on an crowned eagle, suspending the Danish Order of the Elephant, with pierced Wildman supporters and the crown of a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire (one steel chipped, one top-jaw, jaw screw and both ramrods missing) 74.5 cm; 29¼ in barrels (2)

A 21-BORE AUSTRIAN FLINTLOCK SPORTING GUN WITH FINELY CAST GILT-BRASS MOUNTS, VIENNA OR SALZBURG, CIRCA 1730 with etched twist barrel formed with sighting flat and stepped moulded breech, silver "spider" fore-sight, bevelled lock chiselled with a two-part boar-hunting scene in low relief on a punched matted ground, the cock, its top jaw and the steel each chiselled en rocailles, carved moulded figured walnut full stock decorated en suite with rococo ornament about the barrel tang, the butt with raised cheek-piece decorated with a star formed of inlaid contrasting wood segments, carved in relief with scrolls and acanthus flourishes at both ends and about the base of the comb, with full gilt-brass mounts finely cast in low relief with a series of elaborate rococo vignettes, comprising butt-plate decorated with the figure of a lady huntress standing in contemporary hunting dress beneath an exotic baldacchino, solid side-plate decorated with a landscape vignette involving hunting dogs and shot game within a scrollwork frame suspending a demon mask, trigger-guard finial cast in the form of a further baldaccino, involving a sportsman in contemporary dress within a vignette on the bow, decorated with a demon mask on the finger-spur, and with three faceted ramrod-pipes (one side-nail, the fore-end cap and the ramrod each missing, the stock cracked about the full area surrounding the barrel tang) 96.5 cm; 38 in barrel The etched twist barrel is a fashionable legacy of the Ottoman style of barrelmaking popularised in Austria and Southern Germany by the firearms included among the booty of the Austro-Turkish Wars of 1683-99 and 1716-18. Mounts of this high quality are characteristic of the luxury firearms produced by the leading gunmakers in Vienna and Salzburg within the first half of the 18th century. The highly elaborate portrayal on the butt-plate of the figure of a lady huntress is quite possibly a reference to the Empress Amalia, consort of the Emperor Joseph I. A contemporary account of a shoot held especially for the ladies of the Viennese Court describes the Empress finely dressed and shooting from a throne at the end of a beautiful alley in her garden; see Hayward Vol. II 1963, p.119-20.

A 25-BORE GERMAN FLINTLOCK SPORTING RIFLE BY SAMUEL CRAMER, DATED 1739 with swamped octagonal barrel signed and dated around the face of the muzzle, the entire remaining surfaces with a minutely punched matted finish, silver fore-sight, iron back-sight, the tang engraved with a stag and a demon mask, rounded lock signed on a scroll engraved beneath the pan, figured walnut full stock carved with a series of acanthus leaf mouldings in low relief about the barrel tang, the lock and the mounts, the butt carved en suite on both sides and about the base of the comb, the cheek-piece inset with a gilt-brass roundel engraved with the owner`s arms, two lions passant guardant on a mantled shield with crests, the reverse side fitted with carved sliding patch-box cover inset with a gilt-brass plaque engraved with a stag, full gilt-brass mounts cast in low relief, the butt-plate engraved with classical hunting trophies, a Diana bust and a demon mask, with side-plate formed as a pierced design of strapwork and scrolls involving a stag pursued by hounds, three faceted ramrod-pipes, horn fore-end cap, sling-swivels, silver escutcheon involving the crown of a ducal heir with lion supporters on a pierced scrollwork base, and horn-tipped wooden ramrod (the butt with a small crack on one side) 77.2 cm; 30 3/8 in barrel The maker is hitherto unrecorded but is possibly a member of the Kramer family of gunmakers of Hofgeismar in northern Hesse

A COMPOSITE SMALL-SWORD, CIRCA 1770, A GERMAN HUNTING SWORD, CIRCA 1750, AND A FRENCH HUNTING SWORD, CIRCA 1770 the first with straight fullered blade double-edged towards the point, iron hilt including boatshell guard, quillons, knuckle-guard and pommel all decorated with writhen designs, and wire-bond grip (pitted); the second with tapering blade of flattened-diamond section, iron hilt (incomplete) and the grip veneered with tortoiseshell (small chips), the third with broad fullered blade (pitted), engraved brass hilt including cross-guard, cap pommel and carved bone grip the first: 79.5 cm; 31 3/8 in blade (3)

AN ITALIAN HUNTING DAGGER, LATE 18TH CENTURY with tapering blade formed with a long central fuller on each face framed by two further fullers, fluted horn hilt (losses) encased in panels of German silver engraved with scrolls of foliage, and foliate cap pommel 20 cm; 7 7/8 in blade

AN ITALIAN HUNTING DAGGER, LATE 18TH CENTURY with sharply tapering blade double-edged towards the point, reinforced and notched along the back-edge, tapering horn grip reinforced with embossed silver ribs, silver foliate pommel cap and matching ferrule 24.5 cm; 9 3/4 in blade

A SCANDINAVIAN HUNTING DAGGER AND ANOTHER DAGGER, 19TH CENTURY the first cut-down from a hunting sword, with tapering blade, brass cross-piece, spirally-carved wooden grip bound with plaited wire, and decorated brass pommel, in its brass-mounted leather scabbard; and the second with tapering blade cut with a slender central fuller, straight iron cross-piece with slanting terminals, spirally carved ivory grip, and German silver pommel formed as a philosopher 20.2 cm; 8 in blade (2)

A FINE PAIR OF 18 BORE FLINTLOCK HOLSTER PISTOLS OF PRESENTATION QUALITY SIGNED BLANCH, LONDON, BIRMINGHAM PROOF MARKS, CIRCA 1830 with three-stage sighted barrels engraved with trophies-of-arms, foliage, sun bursts and signed within a decorative framework over the breeches, struck with Birmingham proof marks beneath, engraved tangs retaining traces of gilding and incorporating the back-sights, signed engraved stepped locks retaining traces of gilding, fitted with pierced cocks, bolt safety-catches, rollers and semi-rainproof pans, figured walnut full stocks profusely inlaid with silver wire scrolls carrying engraved silver cornucopia, trophy-of-arms and trophy-of-hunting plaques, the tangs, locks and pommels all partially enclosed by further silver lines sown with minute pellets, gilt-copper alloy mounts cast and chased in low relief, comprising solid side-plates decorated with classical trophies, spurred pommels decorated with further trophies and cornucopia, trigger-guards en suite, trophy-of-arms escutcheons, and a pair of ramrod-pipes, engraved silver barrel bolt escutcheons, original ramrods, and the mounts retaining much original gilding 30.5 cm; 12 in barrels (2)

A GERMAN ROCOCO HUNTING-SWORD AND SCABBARD WITH EARLIER CARVED IVORY GRIP, CIRCA 1770-80 the blade etched with scrolls and Latin mottos on both sides (pitted), with brass hilt cast in relief with rococo ornament, including short quillons with re-curved tips, fluted shell-guard and domed cap pommel, fitted with earlier ivory grip finely carved in high relief with a complex spiral pattern of boar, stags, hares and a lion all entwined in combat with hounds, in its original leather scabbard with decorated locket and provision for a by-knife (missing, the chape associated) 54.6 cm; 21½ in blade The grip, now partly obscured by the 18th century mounts, is finely carved in the manner and quality of the renowned Maucher workshops of Schwäbish-Gmund and dates from circa 1680.

A SOUTH GERMAN SILVER-GILT HUNTING-SWORD AND SCABBARD WITH CARVED IVORY GRIP, LATE 17TH/EARLY 18TH CENTURY with slender curved blade double-edged towards the point, cut with a series of very narrow fullers and etched with a scrolling pattern of large flowerheads and foliage on both sides at the forte, silver-gilt hilt with loop-guard (knuckle-guard missing), the grip carved in high relief with a complex spiral pattern of three boars, a stag and hares all entwined in combat with hounds, in its original leather-covered wooden scabbard with silver-gilt chape with raised filigree settings for semi-precious stones (the stones and the scabbard locket all missing) 65.8 cm; 25 7/8 in blade The grip is most probably from the workshops of the ivory carvers of Schwäbish-Gmund.

A GERMAN CROSS-HILTED HUNTING-SWORD WITH EXTREMELY RARE ETCHED CALENDAR BLADE, THE BLADE CIRCA 1620-30, THE HILT AND THE SCABBARD EACH 16TH CENTURY with long broad flat blade double-edged and coming to a very short point, etched in fine detail over almost the entire length of each face with a Gregorian calendar in linear tabulated form, one side bearing the months "IANIARIVS" to "IVNIVS", the other "IVLIVS" to "DECEMBER", giving the days of the week abbreviated to their first letters, each day of the month numbered and with its saints` day or day of religious observance identified, the named months additionally identified by their respective German seasonal names together with the monthly total number of days, the monthly tables punctuated by cartouches filled with the twelve Zodiacal signs together with a cabalistic Greek miniscule letter, the final cartouche inscribed "Mon Esperence En Dieu" ("My Hope in God"), and decorated with rollwerk panels on both sides at the base, fitted with earlier rounded iron crosspiece with button terminals, stopper-shaped pommel, and wooden grip retaining a pair of "Turks` heads" and a portion of the original binding all of patterned brass wire: in an earlier leather-covered wooden scabbard, decorated with tooled moulded bands about the top, with provision for extra-pieces and fitted with pierced U-shaped iron chape (the blade coarsely filed along the edges and over the surface of the base on one side, the scabbard suspension hook and the extra-pieces each missing) 87 cm; 34¼ in blade This blade would appear to be hitherto unrecorded. A sword mounted with a calendar blade tabulated and inscribed in a near identical manner, almost certainly by the same hand, is in the von Kienbusch Collection, in the Philadelphia Museum of Art: see von Kienbusch 1963, cat. no. 439, pl.CII. The von Kienbusch blade is etched additionally with portrait medallions, including that of Maximilian, Count Palatine of the Rhine, the title with which he was invested in 1623. Another closely comparable blade signed by the Solingen bladesmith Clemens Tache was formerly in the armoury of the Grand-Dukes of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach in the Wartburg: see Diener-Schönberg 1912 (W.-G.-I. Nr. 4456), cat. no. 401, p.110, pl.60. The Gregorian or Christian calendar was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII in 1582. For a general account of extant German and English hunting weapons with calendar blades see Blackmore 1971, pp.17-18. Also see Seiler 1940-42, pp. 11-19, for a detailed survey of the calendar blades of Ambrosius Gemlich of Munich (active circa 1527-42), whose work was most likely the source of inspiration for the present 17th century blade. The scabbard is of the type found on German and Swiss Landesknecht swords in the early 16th century and as such is very rare in its own right. A closely comparable example with sword and extra-pieces, circa 1520, is in the collection of the late Sir James Mann: see Dufty, 1974, pl. 16a.

A GERMAN BOAR-HUNTING SWORD (SCHWEINSDEGEN), THIRD QUARTER OF THE 16TH CENTURY with short blade of flattened diamond section forged in one piece with a long slender shank of rectangular section, slotted immediately behind the blade for attaching a toggle, struck on one side with the bladesmith`s mark "PP", and formed with a short ricasso with acutely bevelled sides flared towards the base, faceted iron crosspiece with button terminals, chiselled early rapier pommel, and early moulded two-stage grip bound with leather over cords (the pommel associated, perhaps within the early period of use). 101 cm; 39¾ in blade

A GERMAN HUNTING-SWORD AND SCABBARD, CIRCA 1650 with tapering double-edged blade formed with a very low medial ridge over its length on both sides and both sides with a small mark inlaid in latten, iron hilt with down-turned quillon with chiselled monster`s head terminal, fluted shell-guard, the knuckle-guard interrupted by a further chiselled monster`s head, the upper portion of the guard issuant from its mouth and with chiselled terminal, also a monster`s head, the grip of natural staghorn with iron basal collar and a flat iron plate over the top, and in a contemporary iron-mounted leather scabbard, possibly the original, with provision for a by-knife 62.3 cm; 24½ in blade

A GERMAN BOAR-HUNTING SWORD (SCHWEINSDEGEN), THIRD QUARTER OF THE 16TH CENTURY with short blade of flattened diamond section forged in one piece with a long slender shank of rectangular section, the latter slotted immediately behind the blade for attaching a toggle, struck on both sides with the bladesmith`s mark, in a rectangle, a wolf over the letter W, together with a pair of circular stellate marks and widening to form a bevelled short ricasso, fitted with iron guard (now inverted) of rounded bars, formed with a pair of trumpet-shaped quillons forward-swept and drooping beyond their median, outer ring-guard swelling in the middle, inner guard formed of a diagonal loop linking the head of the single forward arm to the base of the rear quillon and with thumb-ring placed centrally, stopper-shaped pommel, and the grip with later wire binding 107 cm; 42 1/8 in blade

Viking Period Bone Pectoral with Battle Scene11th-12th century AD. A Viking period or later carved scapula pierced to form a pectoral plaque, with reserved border and figures; the border with geometric chevron motifs; the main panel depicting four horsemen to the left, each bare-headed with pleated clothing, hunting dogs (?) to the rear with a handler and face of a dog to the centre; to the right, five bare-headed standing figures with pleated and textured clothing, a vertical frond and two hunting dogs (?) to the rear. 79 grams, 23cm (9"). Found on a building site in York, Yorkshire, UK; in 1946. Fine condition.

A Tabriz Hunting Carpet, the indigo field with a central pale blue medallion... A Tabriz Hunting Carpet, the indigo field with a central pale blue medallion and palmettes, with tigers, lions and deer scattered throughout amongst leaves and tendrils, the salmon pink border with rams amongst palmettes, 607cm x 459cm.