LONDON.- A magnificent, and very rare, Nordenfelt .43 mechanical gun – one of the very first machine guns – was the star piece at the sale of The Daedalus Collection at Bonhams in London on 1 December. It sold for £81,250 against a pre-sale estimate of £50,000-70,000. The sale made a total of £449,200, and more than 90% of the lots were sold.

The Nordenfelt .43 mechanical gun was designed by the Swedish engineer, Helge Palmcrantz, in around 1873. It was used by the British Navy in Egypt in 1882, and during General Hicks’ expedition to the Sudan the following year, before being phased out in favour of the Maxim gun.

An 1873 Winchester rifle
An 1873 Winchester First Model rifle, said to have been used at the Battle of The Little Bighorn, outstripped its estimate of £2,000-3,000 when it sold for £16,250. It came from the family of a gold miner, blacksmith and engineer named Moses A. Welch (d.1913) who acquired the gun while working at the Blackfoot Indian Reservation in Montana Territory. According to family tradition,’it was surrendered by an Indian warrior that helped kill Gen. Custer and his men’.

Other notable lots included:

• A rare .56 Percussion Colt 1855 Model ‘British’ Five-shot Revolving Carbine sold for £15,000 (estimate £3,500-4,500)

• A very rare .44 Percussion Colt Paterson Improved Second Model Ring-lever Eight-shot Revolving Rifle which made £15,000 (estimate £10,000-15,000)

• A cased Presentation .36 Percussion Colt 1862 Model Police Revolver

The Daedalus Collection of antique and vintage firearms illustrated the span of American and European technical advances in firearms design and innovation during the 19th century.

David Williams, Bonhams Director of the Antique Arms and Armour Department. “The outstanding Daedalus collection of antique and vintage firearms was carefully assembled over many years with an eye to quality and condition. Not surprisingly it inspired fierce bidding, and 90 % of the pieces found new owners with many lots far exceeding their estimates.”

Antique Arms and Armour
Bonhams Antique Arms and Armour sale in London on 30 November made £679,300 with 90% of lots being sold. Among the highlights were a rare Mamluk Helmet, which sold for £50,000 (estimate £40,000-50,000), and a fine cased pair of Highland 28-bore Flintlock Belt Pistols presented to the Marquess of Breadalbane by the electors of Perthshire in 1836. The pair sold for £21,500 (estimate £15,000-20,000).