Come on guys, compare a flinter to a percussion to a pin fire to a breechloader built in the late 1800's to a modern firearm built by let's say Purdey or Boss, Manton or Daw, Westley Richards or Thomas Bland, got to love the long history and heritage of the British firms, is there any difference in their perfection, no. Each sample from that specific era will signify perfection in the gunmaker's art; so in other words until all of these British firms have disappeared you can't possibly narrow down or nail down a term such as "The Golden Era".
All the best