Holland & Holland, 98 New Bond Street, London
12 bore 'The Royal Patent Safety Hammerless Ejector'
Bar Action, Sidelock Ejector
No. 12765 No. 2 of pair
Date of manufacture: 1890

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Heritage Guns' Comment This is a very lovely example of Holland & Holland's 'flag ship' gun from the last quarter of the 19th Century and is in unusually good and original condition for its age. Holland & Holland records show that the gun was finished in 1890 for 'Holland' and it is believed that it was built for one of the Holland family. As there were only 4 male Hollands in the family at this time: Harris being around 80 years of age, Henry being 45 and Henry's two sons at 11 and 12 respectively, it is reasonable to assume that this was Henry Holland's very own gun. It was later sold on as a second hand gun to a Mr Hay. The very unusual paucity of information in the records tends to support this assumption as the 'boss' was there to supervise the building of his own gun! The only piece of information is that Whitworth steel barrels by Henry Squire were specified. Squire was a top-flight barrel maker based in 3 George Yard, Soho and supplied barrels to most of the Best London gun trade, including Thomas Boss. As with so many older guns, the steel chopperlump barrels had been soft solder sleeved and we have recently re-sleeved the gun using the so-called 'Invisible Sleeving' TIG welding method and re-proofed it for 2 3/4" cartridges. The gun is housed in its relined original case with some accessories. With its case, provenance, interceptor sears and excellent dimensions, this gun would make an unusual and classy target or game gun for the discerning shooter. WE REGRET THAT THIS GUN IS NOW SOLD. IF YOU ARE SEARCHING FOR A SIMILAR GUN, PLEASE CONTACT US.

The action is of combined Holland & Robertson design and features:
'Dip Edge' lockplates,
Gold inlaid '2' on barrels and action,
Double triggers bolted by an automatic top tang safety slide,
Bar action locks with bolstered tumbler pivots,
Holland & Robertson 's cocking levers,
Breech face 'Gas Checks',
'Patent Safety Lock' Interceptor Sears,
Top lever operating a 'Purdey Bolt' by way of a 'Scott Spindle',
Top rib extension providing a 3rd bite,
Holland & Robertson's patent ejector and split extractors
and Anson's push rod forend catch.
Gun weight 6lb 8oz
Engraving style Best Fine Bouquet & Scroll. Gold inlaid '2' to top lever and barrel rib.
Trigger pulls measure approximately: Front trigger 3lbs Rear trigger 4lbs
The steel to steel TIG sleeved barrels are 28" in length, chambered for 2 3/4" (70mm) cartridges and are of brazed 'chopperlump' construction with soft soldered ribs.
Top rib is of the smooth, concave game type.
London reproof for 70mm nitro powder cartridges in 2010.

Approximate barrel measurements at date of publication:

Straight Hand Stock and Splinter Forend are crafted from highly figured walnut. There is a repair inlet to the forend wood edge. There is a slight gap around the stock-weighting plug within the chequered butt area.

The approx 22 lines per inch chequering is to normal sidelock pattern. The stock is lightly cast off for a right-handed shot and features a vacant yellow metal escutcheon and well defined drop points. The stock is finished with a traditional linseed oil based preparation as used on best guns by one of the top English makers. This finish uses no grain fillers to achieve its deep, smooth lustre, only many hours of alternate build and flatting off of the surface.

Approximate stock measurements at date of publication:

For the purposes of these measurements, 'Drop at Face' is the 'drop' measurement taken on a line perpendicular to the
line joining the trigger and centre of the butt at approximately 8" from the trigger (front trigger on a double trigger gun).

Patents Exhibited include:
Scott's gas check patent no. 617 of 1882,
Holland & Robertson's cocking lever patent no. 23 of 1883,
Holland & Robertson's interceptor sears patent no. 5834 of 1887,
Holland & Robertson's ejector patent no. 16691 of 1888,
'Purdey Bolt' patent no. 1104 of 1863,
'Scott Spindle' patent no. 2752 of 1865,
Scott's top extension patent no. 1902 of 1875,
Anson's forend fastener patent no. 3791 of 1872.