A Cased Pair Of 20-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols

A Cased Pair Of 20-Bore Flintlock Duelling Pistols By Twigg & Bass, London, Circa 1788-90 With slightly swamped rebrowned twist octagonal sighted barrels each with oval gold-lined maker's stamp at the breech and gold-lined touch-hole, border engraved tangs each with back-sight and decorated with a martial trophy and foliage, border engraved flat bevelled detented locks each decorated with a starburst behind the semi-rainproof pan and with a trophy on the stepped tail (one cock with old repair), safety-catches, and steels each with roller bearing on a ramp on the steel-spring, figured half-stocks (minor old repairs) each with horn fore-end cap and chequered rounded butt, steel trigger-guards each with urn finial and decorated with a Britannia shield and foliage on the border engraved bow, turned ramrod-pipes, adjustable set triggers, and original ramrods, one with steel worm, the other with powder-measure (locks and mounts with later finishing): in original relined and refitted brass-mounted mahogany case with brass-mounted three-way powder-flask, steel bullet mould and ramrod, the exterior of the lid (minor old repair) with flush-fitting brass carrying handle and oval brass escutcheon engraved with owner's initials 'WM', London proof marks 23 cm. barrels Footnotes: Provenance Christie's South Kensington, The J.C.L. Knapton Collection of Antique Firearms, 28 Feburary 1990, lot 102 Literature W. Keith Neal and D.H.L. Back, Great British Gunmakers, 1740-1790, 1975, p. 156 This lot is subject to the following lot symbols: * * VAT on imported items at a preferential rate of 5% on Hammer Price and the prevailing rate on Buyer's Premium. For further information on this lot please visit Bonhams.com For further information about this lot please visit the lot listing