This Pennsylvania Rifle is listed in the Tulpehocken and Early America by B.J. Manbeck & B. R. Reed, Womelsdorf: Tulpehocken Settlement Historical Society, Vol XXXIII, #1, 2001.
The Pennsylvania/Kentucky Longrifle and Its Lebanon County Connection by B. J. Manbeck & B. R. Reed. Lebanon: Lebanon County Historical Society, Vol. 18, No. 5, 2003.
Provenance, Don Vaughn's collection for 27 years, mine for the last 16. No wood added; tiny bit of curator's fill to preserve around burnout, never cleaned out and professionally restored; too insignificant to fiddle with, so far.
Specs: OAL 58" Bbl. 42 1/2" octagon. Fullstock, honey color finish. .50 cal., 6-groove deep rifling. 13 1/2" pull. Buttplate max. width 1 3/4". M.M. Maslin, Warranted Lock, looks right. Good example of Beyer's "Dutchified Rococo" and the mastery of his carving/engraving.
Comments:
Now That's a grand Beyer, and there doesn't even need to be a name on the barrel to tell his work.
Also a good example of how Beyer loved removing wood to make all his carving prominent and bold.
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Nice looking Beyer with great carving. The tang carving, where Beyer carved around the thumb inlay, is an unusual and attractive touch that enhances the wrist treatment. Patchbox color is duller and more even than expected; perhaps it was heavily polished in the past and is now being allowed to mellow down to better match the rest of the gun. Appears to have a brass vent pick with "barrel shaped" head stuck into lower butt edge; would be nice to see the pick more closely, particularly if an original pick. Overall a fine candidate for museum.
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If every Kentucky Rifle collector wants to own a good Beyer rifle; this then is the gun to have as it is one of Beyer's best. Fully relief carved, his trademark box, original flint, and in 'as found' condition: folks, it don't get much better than this. Send it off to the Library wall immediately and don't drool on it!
Just one thing; it would be nice to see some photos of the forward carving on the stock. We can wonder if it is carved ahead of the t'guard and behind the entry pipe. Ditto for the forestock, (molding?).
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I agree with you fully on the superior quality of this Beyer rifle, but I wouldn't pronounce it as an "original flint" yet until I saw a better picture of the lock... a couple of the screw heads look new, based on what I can see of their slots.
