spgordon. Yes, those would be the important aspects. As Scotty mentions, schools were 20th/21st century mental constructs, created to enable collectors/students to compartmentalize neatly for discussion. Professor Kauffman referred to them as "county characteristics." His term evolved from how he saw things in his day. County discussions served the purposes of Henry, Joe Kindig and Sam Dyke, the principal longrifle writers of the day. Today we know that the characteristics don't follow rigid county lines any more than they do state police districts.
Also, did you ever think of something like this hypothetical scenario of 200 years ago, when Jake the hunter came into Stophel's gunshop in Reading.
Jake comes in and says, "Hi, Stoph. Hey, I had a good year, and want you to make me a new rifle. I want one just like Henry's new one. Have you seen that beauty? Got it somewhere around Philadelphia. I want one just like his, but fancier."
Stophel looks up from the leg vise and says, "Nope, haven't seen Henry's rifle. So Henry's spending money out of town, eh?"
Jake: "Well, I'll have him bring it in. It is shaped a bit differently than our rifles, a little sleeker, and the patch box is different. That gun fits me and I can hit with it! I want one shaped like his!"
Stophel: "Well, dammerung, quit talking and have him bring it in. If they can make it near Philadelphia, I can make it here better. But, if I don't like the looks of it, I ain't signing the barrel."
Then Stoph tried his hand at what we now refer to as Bucks County school work, thus giving collectors today something to stare at in amazement and perplexity. And, further, allowing all to pontificate about fine points...finials, volutes, golden mean dimensions, school motifs, and engraving style. Some are inclined to get off on tangents regarding symbolism which usually further diverts attention from the true matter in hand. Oddly, if someone came up with a scenario like the one above, he may be dismissed by the "experts" because his analysis is too simple.
What we don't mean by "schools." An example of a difference in the use of the simple word "school" as associated to collecting.
If one considers Japanese culture, their pivotal, historical counterpart to the Kentucky rifle would be the Samurai sword, specifically the katana sword. Make no mistake about it, Japanese family lines buy and covet these swords every bit as much as we do a J. P. Beck.
Early, original Samurai swords can be grouped for classification into five ancient schools. Experts usually concur upon examination as to the nature of the piece being examined.
In those days, a master would train his apprentices to do exactly the same thing, in the same manner, thus producing pieces only up to the master's standards and style. They went out to the countryside and did the best they could to build swords identical to those of the master. Many are indistinguishable, one from the other, within any given school, because the work is so uniform and meticulous. Then to add to the amazement, all this was passed down with language that we would best call poetry, such as, "your coals should be as the color of the setting sun." They did use hallmarks, touch marks, and sometimes signatures, and the term "school" is more well defined there. In other words, any changing of schools would have happened by now. The concept is better established and agreed upon by students of the blades.
If the architecture is there, the blade is old and pristine, all the parts appear to have evolved together and if there is blatant school association, someone will pay big bucks for that sword.
Because of our industrial goals and the development of our countryside, our reference to "school" is looser than the Japanese cognate referring to swords. We did have some movement and blending of styles. Individualism was tolerated and imitation was not the objective. Groups of shops shared styles but there is obviously room for debate about where these groups started and stopped.
ALR philosophers can argue whether this is a difference in kind or degree, but there is a difference, and one need only listen once to two sword men discuss an old katana and then listen to two Kentucky guys discuss a rifle to hear it firsthand.
