I thought I would post something a little different for the forum's collective consumption.
The Kentucky Long Rifle represents a true American firearm, from the day of pioneers on the frontier, when one shot was the difference between filling your belly or going hungry. This is the type of rifle used by such famous early American frontiersmen as Davy Crockett. True pre-Civil War period Kentucky long rifle's are scarce and few in number. This example dates to ca. 1845-1850 and was made in North Carolina by North Carolina gunsmith Evan Johnson. The workmanship is beautiful - the photos don't quite do it justice.
Typical of the period, the lock was recycled from an earlier firearm. In this case, the lock is from an early-19th Century American firearm, and has an eagle stamp on the plate aft of the hammer. The stock is made of tiger-striped burled maple. The action made use of a dual trigger, the set trigger allowing for a very light pull. While monstrously heavy, with a length of nearly 5 1/2 feet (over 1.6 meters), the rifle is still quite manageable and could be fired off-hand without much trouble. I included a photo below showing it alongside a Pennsylvania rifle from the same period to show the significant difference in size. The rifled barrel exceeds four feet (about 123 cm!) in length, which would translate to a higher muzzle velocity, and greater accuracy at range.
I know it's not quite as early as what floats the boat of many forumites here, but hopefully it will not go unappreciated by the resident connoisseurs of antique firearms.
