Friday, September 30, 2016

Banded Powder Horn, Hunting Pouch, and Knife by Clinton E. Byers

This is my interpretation of a Rowan County banded horn. The set was made for a friend and will be paired with an original Rowan County rifle. The shot pouch is meant to reflect the German immigrants out of Pennsylvania and Virginia who helped settle North Carolina. The knife is home-spun from an old saw blade and pinned with copper nails. 







Copy and photos supplied by Clinton E. Byers.

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Smoothrifle by Ian Pratt for David Wright

 The gun represents a colonial stocked smoothrifle utilizing a mix of domestic parts along with salvaged French and English trade gun parts. The relief carving, moldings and panels are painted with varnish tinted with red oxide pigment.









Copy by Ian Pratt with photos by Ric Lambert, David Wright and Jane Wright.

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

The Fort Ligonier Horn by Kevin Hart

Horn Title:      Fort Ligonier Horn
Inscriptions:   “Be these they arts to bid contention cease/
                        Chain up starne war and give the nations peace/
                        O’er subject lands extend they gentle sway/
                        And teach with iron rod the French dogs to obey”/
                        Fort Ligonier 1758
Length:           13 ½ inches along outside edge
Butt/Plug:       3 inch turned curly Maple with turned and aged copper finial
Horn Throat:  Carved engrailing followed by 4 ½ inch round to barrel rifling twist throat with wedding bands in the middle and tip
Plug:               1 ½ inch carved eagle on deer antler
Worn:              Right side
Carvings:       British Royal Seal with Lion and Unicorn, depiction of Fort Ligonier, marching militia, Indians shooting arrows, Winged Lioness, Butterflies, Dragonfly, Native American woodland Indian profiles around top of horn body, Fort Ligonier banner, Indian smoking pipe cartouche with Maker’s Mark





Copy and photos supplied by Kevin Hart.

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

Noggin by Mike Buss






Photographed at the 2016 CLA Show by Jan Riser.

Monday, September 26, 2016

Folding Pocket Knife by Lonnie McMillian







Photographed at the 2016 Tennessee Kentucky Rifle Show by Jan Riser.

Friday, September 23, 2016

Thursday, September 22, 2016

Highly Decorated Early American Patriotic Powder Horn with Federal Eagles, Circa 1815

It is not often that one finds fresh to the market early American powder horns, but this profusely decorated and dated 1815 nine-inch powder horn recently surfaced from a very old and fine New Hampshire collection of Americana. On Christmas Eve, 1814, America and Great Britain signed the Treaty of Ghent, thus ending the thirty-two month long War of 1812. It was two months before word of the treaty made it back to the United States, and several post war battles were fought in early 1815. Following America's triumph in this nearly three year conflict, a wave of fervent patriotism spread across our fledgling nation, and the federal eagle became the great popular symbol of our country. As a result, eagles were inlaid into American furniture, painted on utilitarian stoneware, printed on English Staffordshire pottery made for the American market, and represented on our folk art of the time. Thus, the two wonderful sgraffito carved federal eagles that decorate this early 19th century powder horn showcase the nationalist pride of the American people at the close of the War of 1812.