Sold For $491
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American flintlock fowling gun with French 1763-1766 Pattern musket lock, marked "Israel Bean / Sandwich / 1788" on the stock, NSN, .67 caliber (approx. 16 bore), 39" octagon breech barrel with a dark, pitted bore. This is a well-made and attractive fowler that has a "LONDON" marked barrel with crisp London proofs on the breech, mated to a "Charleville" marked French musket or fusil lock. The metal has an overall dark plum-brown patina throughout, with mild pitting on the barrel breech, and some deeper pinprick pitting on the lock, which is fully functional and catches firmly at both half and full-cock. The half-length sporting style stock has a darkly tarnished brass nosecap, with small handling marks and minor blemishes in the otherwise nice period oil finish. The brass trigger guard and buttplate are in very good shape, and exhibit a dull, yellow-ochre patina throughout. The gun is accompanied by an old trumpet-head musket ramrod.
The right side of the buttstock has "ISRAEL BEAN / SANDWICH / 1788" stamped into the wood near the heel of the butt, and has had black ink added at some point for legibility. This could be a reference to either Sandwich, MA, or Sandwich, NH, both of which had established families named Bean. A search of records yields little information, but there was an Israel Bean who served as a Private in the 2nd Regiment (Holland’s) of the Massachusetts Militia during the War of 1812; and a birth record from Sutton, NH, for a Milton Bean, son of Israel Bean, dated September 11, 1814.
