9th Sep, 2026 11:00
Fine Antique Arms and Armour from the Philippe Missillier Collection
56
A VERY RARE FRENCH 54 BORE WHEEL-LOCK LONG HOLSTER PISTOL, ALSACE OR LORRAINE, EARLY 17TH CENTURY
with long tapering two-stage barrel with raised moulding at the muzzle, the upper three flats of the breech cut with longitudinal recesses each with incised line, the central flat struck at the rear with unidentified barrelsmith’s mark, interlinked crescents above a star in a shield, recessed turn behind and long tang extending down the back of the butt, flat lock (filed off, cock and other parts detached) with shell-shaped wheel-retaining bracket with spirally fluted tail, fruitwood full stock profusely inlaid with engraved white horn and mother-of-pear plaques (replacements) originally heightened with polychrome pigment and including hares, animals and birds, and with a winged cherub’s head on the side flat, on a ground of copper alloy leafy tendrils involving mother-of-pearl ball-flowers and all between slender copper alloy double lines, faceted pommel en suite (one mother-of-pearl plaque an old replacement), iron mounts comprising flat scroll side-plate (lock retaining screws missing), pointed iron trigger-plate and tapering trigger-guard (retaining screw, ramrod-pipe and ramrod missing), and white horn fore-end cap (old wear and rust patination overall), 61.0 cm barrel (qty)
Provenance
Philippe Missillier Collection, no. 144C
For another example, formerly in the Hever Castle Collection and stocked in this distinctive fashion, see Christie’s London, Fine Antique Arms And Armour Including The Collection of Dr. Robert Amalric, 24 May 2006, lot 143.
A pair of pistols attributed to Sedan and stocked in a similar fashion are in the former Imperial Collection in Gatchina Arsenal, St. Petersburg.
Offered with the major parts of a wheel-lock mechanism.
with long tapering two-stage barrel with raised moulding at the muzzle, the upper three flats of the breech cut with longitudinal recesses each with incised line, the central flat struck at the rear with unidentified barrelsmith’s mark, interlinked crescents above a star in a shield, recessed turn behind and long tang extending down the back of the butt, flat lock (filed off, cock and other parts detached) with shell-shaped wheel-retaining bracket with spirally fluted tail, fruitwood full stock profusely inlaid with engraved white horn and mother-of-pear plaques (replacements) originally heightened with polychrome pigment and including hares, animals and birds, and with a winged cherub’s head on the side flat, on a ground of copper alloy leafy tendrils involving mother-of-pearl ball-flowers and all between slender copper alloy double lines, faceted pommel en suite (one mother-of-pearl plaque an old replacement), iron mounts comprising flat scroll side-plate (lock retaining screws missing), pointed iron trigger-plate and tapering trigger-guard (retaining screw, ramrod-pipe and ramrod missing), and white horn fore-end cap (old wear and rust patination overall), 61.0 cm barrel (qty)
Provenance
Philippe Missillier Collection, no. 144C
Auction: Fine Antique Arms and Armour from the Philippe Missillier Collection, 9th Sep, 2026
Over a period of half a century, Philippe became one of the leading connoisseurs and independent scholars in the field of antique arms and armour from Europe, India and the Islamic world. Consulted by the world’s leading museums and collectors, Philippe possessed a remarkable eye for quality and rarity which is reflected in the objects offered in this sale.
His company was enjoyed at countless exhibitions and sales around the world, where he would greet colleagues with a hummed fanfare, invariably followed by a profound observation imbued with wit and scholarship in equal measure. Philippe belonged to a generation that truly mastered its subject, visiting every museum and attending as many auctions as he could while simultaneously assembling an important library.
A number of the pieces offered here were published in ‘Splendeur des Armes Orientales’, a landmark exhibition catalogue co-authored in collaboration with Howard Ricketts in 1988, and remains a standard reference today. Philippe wore his immense knowledge lightly, balancing academic rigour with good humour, listening generously to the opinions of colleagues, and invariably raising a smile.
Viewing
PUBLIC EXHIBITION:
Sunday 6th September June: 12pm - 4pm
Monday 7th September: 10am - 7pm (Drinks 6-7pm)
Tuesday 8th September: 10am - 5pm
CONTACT:
For further information please contact us | armsandarmour@olympiaauctions.com | + 44 (0) 20 7806 5541
