Beschreibung:

A FINE .450/.400 (3¼IN. NITRO EXPRESS) D.B. HAMMERLESS SIDELOCK EJECTOR OVAL-BORE RIFLE BY C. LANCASTER, No. 13802, 'Best Quality', automatic safe, treble-grip action-body, the action-body, lockplates and furniture profusely gold-inlaid with scrolling tendrils on a foliate-scroll engraved and blued ground, the lockplates gold-inlaid and engraved with the figures of a lion and tiger in naturalistic landscapes and the triggerguard gold-inlaid and engraved with the figure of a leopard, highly-figured stock with pistolgrip, engraved and gold-inlaid pistolgrip-cap, cheekpiece, recoil-pad and gold-inlaid butt-plate, sling-swivels, the chopper-lump barrels with gold-inlaid sight-rib, open-sights and ramp-mounted bead-foresight with removable protector, the breech-ends and muzzles similarly gold-inlaid Weight 10lb. 10oz., 14¼in. pull, 26in. barrels, nitro proof The makers have kindly confirmed that the rifle was completed at some time between 1911 and 1921. The records show that the rifle was 'in the white' on the 10th September 1903 and that it was built as one of a pair for the same customer. H. A. A. Thorn, proprietor of Lancaster's in the late nineteenth century, was a great exponent of the oval-bore, declaring 'that there is nothing to wear out, no sharp edges to wear down', and believing that 'where there are sharp edges every shot is doing something towards wearing out the barrels'