Sorry about the poor quality of the photos but it was a long time ago with a little camera and it was a rainy day. The only way I could get decent light was to try to get photos out under a front porch roof of a hunting cabin. It was Rich Hujsa that had it. The story as I remember it was that he was at some folk festival or something down around Kutztown and there was a "little old lady" dressed up in colonial clothes, leading a mule, and she was carrying this thing that was as big as she was. As I said, it's a heavy sucker (look at the muzzle photo and you can see why). **I think** the entire lock was missing but I'm not sure - might have been just converted or something, I don't remember exactly now, but Rich told her if she let him borrow it he'd do the lock over which he did. That's about all I remember.
I was particularly interested in this one because the little face is CLEARLY an indian, no doubt there.
I don't think there's any doubt that your piece and this one were made by the same guy. I also like if you look closely how the carved detail around the tail of the lock panels looks like a little face with arms thrown up in the air! haha, it really does.
The stock work is quite accomplished but his carving seems wild and wooly, very freeform and "quick" to my eye.
