Vaughan
Wiltshire from Worcestershire, UK
Here
is a picture of Vaughan Wiltshire holding the Perrins Pepperbox Pistol that he
donated to the Worcester City Museum in 2003.
This
is a six shot 120 bore self cocking bar hammer percussion pepperbox revolver
made in Worcester by John Perrins sometime between 1840 -1850. The pistol
is eight inches overall, barrels length of two-and-three-quarter inches with
Birmingham proof marks. The rounded frame is engraved with scrolls and Perrins
Maker Worcester.
It has a checkered walnut butt with a steel engraved butt cap with a
hinged trap.
During
the 1840s many pistols were being made in Birmingham so John Perrins has put Maker
on the gun frame to show that he was both the maker and retailer. To
emphasize this point further, an early trade label describes Perrins & Son
as Gun
and Pistol Makers.
The
pistol was bought by Vaughan Wiltshire in 2001 from the Edmund Greenwood
Collection of Percussion Pepperbox Revolvers auctioned by Wallis & Wallis of
Lewes East Sussex in early 2001. Edmund Greenwood was a member of the Arms
& Armour Society of Great Britain and had built up a collection of 179
pepperbox pistols and multi-barreled firearms over 45 years. Earlier
provenance is not known.
Examples of Rigby's Pepperbox Pistols
