.64 caliber (Carbine Bore). 11.5" pinned round barrel with baluster turned moldings at the breech. NSN. Bright finish, brass furniture, walnut stock with raised carved moldings around the lock, counterpane and breech plug tang. Single shot smoothbore muzzleloading flintlock pistol made without sights and with an old wood ramrod secured by a single thimble and an entry pipe. 5.25" rounded "banana" lock with pre-1777 single screw long sear spring, integral rounded, fenced and bridled iron pan and a swan neck cock. Steel spring with trefoil finial. Lock remains in original flint and is marked "WILLMORE" under the pan and "{Crown}/IW" on the interior. Barrel marked "WILLMORE LONDON" and with two crowned proofs and an illegible maker's mark. One is the "{Crown}/F" foreigner's mark of The London Gunmaker's Company, over a "{Crown}/V" both marks are circa 1740s-1760s. 

James Willmore was a London based gunmaker at St. Martin-in-the-Fields circa 1716, moving to Leicester Fields circa 1729 and was "allowed to prove guns as a foreigner" (Blackmore). He was appointed "Gunmaker-in-Ordinary" to King George II in 1740 moved to Horse Guards, relocating to Duke Street, Westminster circa 1750. He was appointed "Gunmaker-in-Ordinary" to King George III in 1761, with the last reference to him being circa 1764. A scare, original flint example of a commercial "Pattern 1730" type pistol, likely produced for an officer while working at Horse Guards circa 1740. {ANTIQUE}

Good. Bore dark and dirty with moderate pitting. Metal lightly cleaned in the past and now toning down to a dull pewter patina with age discoloration and darkness from old dried oil. Metal moderately pitted overall. Markings somewhat weak but remain mostly legible. Lock remains in original flint and endoscopic examination of the bore shows no indications of reconversion. Wood with moderate wear, about 3.5" of slivered loss on the upper reverse of the forend and numerous scattered bumps, dings and mars.