Afghan Pistol

Jim McDougall · 21st June 2015, 06:33 PM

This is indeed a very attractive example of the commercial products of the Khyber regions, and the MOP inlay is much like what is applied to the 'camel guns' (jezails) .
This, like most of the other pistols usually seen, is a copy of the British cavalry pistols of the mid 19th c which were most often percussion (many to India were indeed flintlock as seen in native regts) As can be seen here, the lock is a flintlock which typically is argued as preferred as they could be kept serviceable more easily than percussion, and caps were hard to come by.
The 'rampant lion' mark here became the mark of the East India Co. around 1816-20s. The irregular date stamp is correctly positioned for the early model pistols which used the familiar quadranted heart shape of the EIC, however is of course incongruent.

The date is clearly post EIC, as after the 1857 rebellion, the company was nationalized, and by 1874 defunct.

While these features of course add to the attractive appearance alluding to authenticity, they are clear indicators of the fact this is indeed a 'Khyber copy', and the skills of these artisans.

21st June 2015, 06:33 PM	#4
Jim McDougall Arms Historian Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Route 66 Posts: 10,292	This is indeed a very attractive example of the commercial products of the Khyber regions, and the MOP inlay is much like what is applied to the 'camel guns' (jezails) . This, like most of the other pistols usually seen, is a copy of the British cavalry pistols of the mid 19th c which were most often percussion (many to India were indeed flintlock as seen in native regts) As can be seen here, the lock is a flintlock which typically is argued as preferred as they could be kept serviceable more easily than percussion, and caps were hard to come by. The 'rampant lion' mark here became the mark of the East India Co. around 1816-20s. The irregular date stamp is correctly positioned for the early model pistols which used the familiar quadranted heart shape of the EIC, however is of course incongruent. The date is clearly post EIC, as after the 1857 rebellion, the company was nationalized, and by 1874 defunct. While these features of course add to the attractive appearance alluding to authenticity, they are clear indicators of the fact this is indeed a 'Khyber copy', and the skills of these artisans.