.455 Eley cal., 7.5" barrel, S/N 3697. Marked on top of barrel P. Webley And Son London & Birmingham. Checkered trigger with target sights blued finish with checkered wood grips. Safety is missing, more than likely removed by a left-handed shooter for whom this would be in the way. A fancy style made for the revolver front sight protector. English leather trunk style case with red lining, compartments for the cleaning rods, cartridges and oilier. Top of case is embossed with the initials "CAC". Documentation accompanying the cased Webley establishes the chain of ownership going back to at least 1945. An extract from the "Webley & Scott Day Book, London Dept." indicates that two identical “target revolvers” including serial number 3697 were purchased by the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, on October 29, 1913 and receipted to staff “Q.M. Sgt. Lawrence.” The unmodified .455 specialized pistol likely remained on inventory of the Royal Military Academy during the First World War as its length and weight made it unsuitable for field service. The pistol next appears on a sales receipt dated November 1945 written by the London firm of James Woodward & Sons, gun and rifle makers, sold to a returning American GI named Tech 4 Carlton R. Jones 42nd Machine Records Unit, an ETO level documents tabulation company. Both the unit CO and the London Metropolitan Police issued the required certificate and release “dated 28th November 1945.” The aging veteran Carleton Jones, then living in Arlington, Texas, retained the souvenir Webley until August 1984 when he sold it to a couple named George and Lillian Beams of Schenevus, New York for “the sum of ONE DOLLAR” consideration as part of a larger conveyance of personal property. Shortly afterwards the Beams' happened to sell the Webley to gun shop owner John H. Barlow later the same year. The gun was consigned to Cowan’s by the estate of John H. Barlow, the owner for the last 28 years. The leather case, which is not itemized on the original 1913 Webley & Scott receipt, bears the initials “C.A.C.” “C.A.C.” is unknown. Presuming that “C.A.C.” was at some point a serving British officer, both the 1909 and 1914 Army List show a number of possibilities having those initials, but so far it has not been possible to identify the owner. Parenthetically, one favored attribution put forward is that of Major Cecil Aylmer Cameron (1883-1924), a well connected and highly decorated officer who headed British espionage efforts in France and Holland during the First World War under the codename EVELYN. The quixotic Cameron was serving a three-year sentence for fraud in October 1913 when the Webley was acquired by the RMA casting a high degree of doubt on the attribution. Accompanying the Webley are the original sales receipts and conveyance documents from World War Two as well as the recent letter from Richard Milner, Ltd. with attached photocopied entry from the "Webley & Scott Day Book" documenting the serial number. Condition: Revolver still retains over 90% plus of the original blue finish. Some wear on the external area of the cylinder. Grips are excellent, except for a minute crack where the safety would hit the left grip at the top. Case is excellent. A great rare revolver with its original paper trail.
.455 Eley cal., 7.5" barrel, S/N 3697. Marked on top of barrel P. Webley And Son London & Birmingham. Checkered trigger with target sights blued finish with checkered wood grips. Safety is missing, more than likely removed by a left-handed shooter for whom this would be in the way. A fancy style made for the revolver front sight protector. English leather trunk style case with red lining, compartments for the cleaning rods, cartridges and oilier. Top of case is embossed with the initials "CAC". Documentation accompanying the cased Webley establishes the chain of ownership going back to at least 1945. An extract from the "Webley & Scott Day Book, London Dept." indicates that two identical “target revolvers” including serial number 3697 were purchased by the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, on October 29, 1913 and receipted to staff “Q.M. Sgt. Lawrence.” The unmodified .455 specialized pistol likely remained on inventory of the Royal Military Academy during the First World War as its length and weight made it unsuitable for field service. The pistol next appears on a sales receipt dated November 1945 written by the London firm of James Woodward & Sons, gun and rifle makers, sold to a returning American GI named Tech 4 Carlton R. Jones 42nd Machine Records Unit, an ETO level documents tabulation company. Both the unit CO and the London Metropolitan Police issued the required certificate and release “dated 28th November 1945.” The aging veteran Carleton Jones, then living in Arlington, Texas, retained the souvenir Webley until August 1984 when he sold it to a couple named George and Lillian Beams of Schenevus, New York for “the sum of ONE DOLLAR” consideration as part of a larger conveyance of personal property. Shortly afterwards the Beams' happened to sell the Webley to gun shop owner John H. Barlow later the same year. The gun was consigned to Cowan’s by the estate of John H. Barlow, the owner for the last 28 years. The leather case, which is not itemized on the original 1913 Webley & Scott receipt, bears the initials “C.A.C.” “C.A.C.” is unknown. Presuming that “C.A.C.” was at some point a serving British officer, both the 1909 and 1914 Army List show a number of possibilities having those initials, but so far it has not been possible to identify the owner. Parenthetically, one favored attribution put forward is that of Major Cecil Aylmer Cameron (1883-1924), a well connected and highly decorated officer who headed British espionage efforts in France and Holland during the First World War under the codename EVELYN. The quixotic Cameron was serving a three-year sentence for fraud in October 1913 when the Webley was acquired by the RMA casting a high degree of doubt on the attribution. Accompanying the Webley are the original sales receipts and conveyance documents from World War Two as well as the recent letter from Richard Milner, Ltd. with attached photocopied entry from the "Webley & Scott Day Book" documenting the serial number. Condition: Revolver still retains over 90% plus of the original blue finish. Some wear on the external area of the cylinder. Grips are excellent, except for a minute crack where the safety would hit the left grip at the top. Case is excellent. A great rare revolver with its original paper trail.
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.jpg "Source: Christie's")
.jpg "Source: Christie's")
