with very long lightly swamped barrel decorated over the greater part of its surface with a finely punched ground sown with minute gold stars, the muzzle with a gilt panel of trellis filled with an expanded flowerhead and acanthus foliage ahead of a gilt neoclassical shell, conventional foliage, a star, crescent and garland, silver bead fore-sight on a gold shell, a pair of Ottoman tassels each rising from a crescent, the lower third decorated in gold with stars, crescents, an elaborate flaming grenade, acanthus foliage, a sunburst, garland, bound lances, a quiver of three arrows framed by olive foliage, the breech section engraved and gilt with arrows enclosing a diamond shaped panel of crescents and stars, a raised panel with a spray of palmette centring on the barrelsmith’s stamp of Jean Leclerc (Neue Støckel 179), gold-lined vent and breech section ahead of the pan (the gold with small losses), integral tang punched and gilt en suite with the barrel, blued stepped bevelled lock, signed ‘Boutet’ and ‘A Versailles’ on the upper and lower edges at the front on each side of the steel spring, encrusted with gold foliage on the tail, a shield and a quiver of arrows beneath the pan, the inside blued, stamped ‘P4’ and with burnished fittings and springs, fitted with blued bevelled cock encrusted with a gold cornucopia, and, on the top-jaw, with a thundercloud charged with a crescent, steel encrusted in gold with a further cornucopia, semi-rainproof pan lined with gold, roller, and delicately filed steel spring (the bluing faded in parts), full stock profusely inlaid with finely engraved gold sheet within gold wire frames, comprising a symmetrical arrangement on each side of the fore-end of neo-classical designs including arrows, stars, cornucopia, crescents, olive foliage, an Ottoman trousse, a turban with aigrette, an Ottoman bow and a quiver of three arrows, on the underside of the fore-end an elaborate trophy-of-arms, surmounted by a turban, incorporating a pair of stylised Ottoman swords, arrows and spears carrying a shield charged with a pair of addorsed crescents, three ostrich feathers flanked by further crescents, tang enclosed by a gold line with an Ottoman bow on each side and a crescent behind, the side-plate and lock each bordered by crossed axes and garlands, the butt decorated en suite with the fore-end, including an elaborate trophy of a star and crescent borne by a winged spear issuant with thunderbolts and a tassel beneath on the spine, a symmetrical design of a quiver of arrows surmounted by a flaming grenade, rose and olive foliage, jambiya, aigrettes, crescents, a further shield charged with a crescent on a sunburst, and a frieze of neoclassical foliate scrolls framing shell flowers (a small number of very small dents, two small inlays on the butt lifting, the fore-end with a small closed split in the ramrod channel), full gold mounts comprising butt plate struck with three marks, cast and chased with an elaborate urn on the tang, side plate chased with feathers and foliage on a finely matted ground, trigger-guard struck with a mark on the inside (very slightly bent in profile), with an elaborate finial and a further trophy-of-arms, including a pair of fly whisks and a crescent on the bow, side plate chased with feathers and foliage on a finally matted ground, vacant oval escutcheon engraved with a frame of small circles, five moulded faceted ramrod pipes, the rear-most en suite with the trigger-guard, and octagonal barrel bold escutcheons engraved en suite with the escutcheon, finely carved ebony trigger-guard support decorated with a scroll, foliage and a garland of fruit, blued trigger-plate, hardwood ramrod with ivory tip and brass finial, perhaps the original, and remaining in very good condition with much original finish throughout, In a later green leather-covered padded case, 153.0 cm barrel, 193.5 cm overall

Provenance

The Royal House of Orléans

Duchesse de Guise (probably Princess Isabelle of Orléans, Duchesse de Guise (1878-1961)), Larache, Morocco

Raphel Manchon (1886-1975), circa 1923/4

Daniel Manchon, circa 1975-85

An Important private collection (since 1985)

Sold together with a copy of a statement from Daniel Manchon recording the presentation of this gun to his father who had painted a series of portraits for the Orléans family at their Villa in Larache, Morocco.

Raphael Manchon (1886-1975), studied at the Ecole des Beaux Arts, Caen, and later with G. Ferrer in Paris. He exhibited at the salon of 1911, won the Prix Grand Prix de Rome in 1914 for engraving and a silver medal in 1924.

The entry of Boutet’s Annuaire for the period of AN XII (September 24, 1803 to September 22, 1804) includes the following entry:

Ministre du Relations Extérieur

Fusil simple or, algérien, damasquiné au mat, or incruste, placage or filigrammes or, fr. 9.000

A gun of this quality, with its specific iconography, was almost certainly intended for presentation to the Algerian Dey. French-Algerian relations were highly charged during this period, originating in part from the French failure to pay their agents in Algeria for wheat. The tensions came to a head around 1827 when the French Consul reportedly insulted Hussain Dey who in turn struck him with a fly whisk. The Fly Whisk Incident was used by the French as grounds for their military assault, not least as they were concerned that the English were prepared to seize Algiers. French rule of Algeria followed in 1830.

Nicholas Noël Boutet (1761–1833) is credited with being the principal innovator of the dramatic change in the design and decoration of French firearms that took place from the Revolution of 1789 through to Napoleon’s reign as Emperor (1804-14). Boutet was named directeur-artiste of the newly formed Versailles Arms Manufactory in 1792. The Versailles factory was the principal producer of regulation weapons for the French armies, additionally Boutet was charged with creating richly decorated arms for presentation to military heroes and foreign heads of state.

The silver marks include the excise mark (poinçon de garantie) used in the Seine-Inferieure and the maker's mark for Jean Masson, JM separated by a pellet a five-point star above. The excise mark suggests that there was a workshop in or near Rouen, the centre of the department, which was a centre of export arms prior to the Revolution. The same series of marks occur on a number of elaborate garnitures by Boutet, including the celebrated garniture preserved in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York (acc. No. 1970.179.1) and another sold in this room 8th December 2021, lot 260. See Pyhrr 1973, pp. 266-274.

The elaborate design and exceptional quality of the gold inlay is of significantly higher quality than other pieces made for presentation to dignitaries outside of Europe by Boutet and his workshop.