Hi Steve,
Great idea. I have done this for the Belgian makers;
http://damascus-barrels.com/Belgian_Trade_Marks.html so let me share some insights.
You would not be taking on a small task. I have over 1,000 marks for Belgians published and several hundred more in my notes.
Belgium was an early adopter of being able to register intellectual property. Some of the marks get passed down to new owners or to family. Every time there is a "pass down" the quality changes or even the major product line. eg moving from shotguns to pistols. It was also possible for a house to go out of business and another house take to over the mark.
So registered trade marks are the easy part...
Then there are countless other marks seen on the guns. In many cases I can make a good case for those not being a maker. Rather they are exporters or importer marks. In some cases they are simply the marks of a jobber. It was the only way to assure "your barrels" were credited to your account.
Next is the problem of language usage. When is a form a rhombus and when is it a diamond? It does not sound like an issue until you suddenly have others "helping" fill the list. Then every shape gets debated ad nauseum.
Finally, you have to ask yourself what is acceptable proof? I have no desire to name every damascus pattern, but others disagree.
And so it goes.
It would be a good project for 1 person to tackle.
Pete
