doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com E.M. Reilly; History; Chronology; Serial Numbers

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5580 (1844-47?) 12 bore shotgun - History being changed because of this gun
https://auctions.holtsauctioneers.c...621++++525+&refno=162400&image=0
J.C. REILLY, LONDON
A GOOD 12-BORE PERCUSSION DOUBLE-BARRELLED SPORTING-GUN, serial no 5580,
for between 1835-47, with browned heavy twist 30in. barrels, the raised top-rib signed 'JOSEPH CHARLES REILLY, 316 HIGH HOLBORN, LONDON', bead fore-sight, engraved shell to rib-end, engraved plugs, fully engraved top-tang, rounded border and scroll engraved isolated bar-action locks with semi-dipped tails and signed forwards of the engraved dolphin-headed hammers 'REILLY', walnut half-stock with finely engraved iron furniture and complete with its original brass mounted ebony ramrod, overall length 46 1/2in, weight approximately 7 3/4lbs.




For comparison, SN 5512(extensively discussed several pages above):


This 12 bore Reilly percussiion SxS shotgun SN 5580 is for sale at Holt's. It has the Joseph Charles Reilly, 316 High Holborn, London Address. It's a significant gun for Reilly history and it's interesting for a couple of points:

-- 16 bore 5512 SxS percussion shotgun comes from the same ilk - only with both the 316 address and the new 502 Address on the rib. This makes me wonder if J.C. didn't have a 5500 series of serial numbers in the 1840's.

-- the Holt's advertisement used this line's to get the date right. Then devolved back to urban legend. The history was sent several times to Holt's. Until it's published and in print, they won't use it unless they can sell guns with it.

Will add to the history a note of the now "possible" 5500 series of JC guns from the 1840's; this will bear more research and need more guns to come to light.

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(Have added following to the history):

Note: There are two extant SxS percussion guns from apparently the mid-1840's which are very similar; It may be that J.C. Reilly had a 5500 serial number series of some sort; more guns are needed to establish this point. (One wonders whether this series might be connected to 4573 above; if so it would add a good 1,000 guns to the total Reilly made):

. . .-- 5512 – March 1847?, a 16 bore SxS muzzle loader shotgun, which has “J.C. Reilly 316 High Holborn now 502 New Oxford Street, London” on the rib, (the only gun found so far with both addresses and obviously numbered around the time of the move) (the two addresses are printed in a slightly different font indicating 5512 may have been brought in for maintenance and reengraved at that time);

. . .-- 5580 – 1845-47?, a 12 bore SxS muzzle loader shotgun, which has “J.C. Reilly 316 High, London” on the rib, (engraving and format very similar to 5514 above);