Confederate "A" Marked Cleaned & Repaired British Pattern 1856 Enfield Rifle Dated 1861
American Civil War
.577 caliber. 33" barrel secured by two rounded screw clamping bands. NSN. Heavily oxidized metal, iron mountings, walnut stock. Single shot percussion muzzleloading military rifle with saber bayonet lug, military ladder rear sight, base and blade front sight, sling swivels attached to the rear tang of the triggerguard and upper barrel band. Lock marked 1861/TOWER forward of the hammer and with a {CROWN} at the tail. Breech with post-1813 Birmingham commercial view, proof and definitive proof marks with a pair of 25 gauge marks stamped over the original Liege proofs. A Confederate "Cleaned and Repaired" A mark is present in front of the triggerguard. An additional single letter U, possibly a yet to be identified CS arsenal repair mark, is stamped behind the triggerguard tang. Barrel and stock are assembly numbered together, the lock is a period replacement from the CS refurbishment, as is the forward lock screw. The ramrod is a 30" swelled shank US 1855/61 pattern rod about 3" short of a usable length for this gun. See Captain Steven W. Knott's book Captured & Collected - Confederate Reissued Firearms for a discussion of these repaired guns marked with use of single capital letters forward of the triggerguard to mark them. Includes a partial English pattern snap cap with chain.
This lot is located in Cincinnati.