Thank you Ken. The WR serial-number information confirming that 16001 starts in 1901 is extremely useful, so 16143 being an early-1900s gun now seems quite convincing.
This makes the barrel proof marks even more interesting. I will take much clearer close-up photographs of every proof mark on the flats and underside of both barrels so we can hopefully establish exactly what happened.
Regarding Rock Island, I contacted them simply because I was looking for an independent opinion on identification and market value, particularly from the American collector market. I am not committed to selling the gun through them. I am in France and I am primarily trying to document the gun properly and understand its history before making any decision.
I had not contacted Holt’s yet. If you think they would be particularly appropriate for a British Westley Richards of this period, I would certainly be interested in approaching them as well.
The possibility that this is an early detachable-lock gun is one of the things I find most interesting about it.
Thank you again,
Thomas
