Artwork in the Shooting Field

Among the many masterpieces in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, is a Mesopotamian gold and silver axe-head depicting an eagle-headed demon fighting a dragon. It was made somewhere between the late third to early second millennium B.C. and is witness to man’s ancient urge to decorate arms, those most personal of possessions.

That desire for ornamentation survives and thrives in British, handmade, sporting guns, reflecting an intimacy of ownership that is perhaps only rivalled by yachts and sports cars. Each of these shotguns and rifles is unique, allowing the possessor to express his or her tastes through a piece built perfectly to despatch a bobwhite quail or a Cape buffalo.

There is a handful of firms that makes them, the oldest in London being Boss & Co., established in 1812 and now owned by Arthur DeMoulas, an American who’s loved the marque for decades.

A Boss & Co. sidelock engraved with Carolina duck and acanthus leaves. 

The company’s renowned as the “Builders of Best Guns Only,” and in 1920 stated that “the owner of a Boss gun has the satisfaction of knowing that he has the best gun that money can buy, and that no one has a better.” A century later, few - if any - would dispute that and the guns are still built in exactly the same way. 

Back in the 1890s, the then owner, John Robertson, patented designs for “streamlining guns,” resulting in many labelling it “the racehorse of best guns.” 

The main ‘canvas’ for the engraver’s art is the side of the gun, the lock plate, and on a Boss it is long, slender, and traditionally engraved in ‘rose and scroll’, resembling bunches of roses surrounded by tightly-furled ferns. It was ‘invented’ in the 1870s by James Lucas, an engraver at the equally famous James Purdey & Sons, founded in 1814, though some think he borrowed the design from Islamic art. 

Boss’ engraver, John Sumner, adapted it some 20 years later, setting five bouquets of roses within prolific scroll and so established what’s become the firm’s house style. 

“We want you to come in here and we will build you any gun or rifle you want,” says DeMoulas. “And some ask for a particular engraver. But most Boss customers are very conservative and the majority want our rose and scroll on color-hardened locks [the process that gives the blue/black/ochre finish] because it compliments the lines of a Boss so well.”

The same is true of many Purdey clients, says their master engraver Paul Chung, who’s practiced his art for 34 years. “Each gunmaker has a specific house engraving, and for Purdey this is called The Purdey Rose and Scroll. This pattern initially was born out of the design of the gun, to compliment the contours, symmetry and to highlight certain features. Now it is part of the classic look of a Purdey shotgun and part of gun engraving’s DNA. But with with different techniques come more opportunities to push the boundaries, which include deep carving, multi-gold inlay, and such detailed images on steel that you could be tricked into thinking you were looking at a portrait painting. Now, because of this, the sky’s the limit regarding what a customer might request.”

Chung stresses that becoming a master engraver takes “a lifetime’s journey. It’s only really validated by the more complex and detailed pieces you’re asked to complete. At present, that journey has taken me to intricate deep carving. It takes quite a while to complete but it’s worth it once it’s done.”

The complexity of that is underlined by Michael Louca, owner of Watson Bros, Gunmakers (founded 1885). “Basically there are two types of engravers - those who can carve and those who cannot. There is still a demand for small scroll for those who want a traditional looking gun but they are not as common now as bold leaf patterns. Game scenes have had an unusual journey - very popular in the '80s and '90s but less so now.”

Naturally, the more complicated the design, the longer it takes. “Standard engraving requires approximately three weeks,” says Louca, “while a special gun can take anything from six months to a few years as the engravers generally need breaks in between to keep fresh.”  

His view is echoed by Robin Brown, owner of A.A. Brown & Sons (Gunmakers), established 1930: “Standard ‘house patterns’ would take three to six weeks these days. In the 1960s, our employed engraver, Les Jones, would engrave a Holland & Holland Royal type pattern in 10 days and it was done very well. Highly carved or inlaid pieces can take up to a year to complete. 

A.A. Brown & Sons’ Supreme de Luxe with rose and scroll.

“Our most intricate commission was probably a pair of 20-bore best sidelocks we made for an American who had a passion for the 18th-century English inventor and engineer Matthew Boulton, and had portraits of him engraved on the actions by Keith Thomas. A more recent piece, also done for an American client, was a variation on our fine rose and scroll that included a scene on the action underside showing his favourite bird, a ruffed grouse, and the tail fan of a ruffed grouse spreading over the action fences. This work was done by Nigel Westaway.” 

What’s common to  most gunmakers, today, is the increasing demand for intricate design. Anthony Alborough-Tregear, managing director of Westley Richards (founded in 1812), notes “Engraving today can be 'house' style - usually copied from classic guns or catalogues, giving the gun a traditional look - or entirely bespoke. The only limiting factor is the customer’s budget. Custom engraving has always been an option but today the scope, quality, and artistry being applied to fine guns and rifles is of a higher standard than at any time in the past. 

“Today, there is increased demand for 'high art'” he continues,  “including really interesting and unusual engraving of beasts - some of the designs created by Paul Lantuch for us are unlike anything done before. Even with traditional styles, the degree of precision and artistry applied to even well-known scroll engraving patterns is constantly being reimagined and elevated.”

As an example of what can be achieved, Alborough-Tregear cites the 'Boutet' gun built by Westley Richards in the '80s. “This gun had gold and silver inlay, diamonds set in platinum into the woodwork, solid silver ornamentation - the true definition of an 'Art Gun'. Since then, Westley Richards has been executing guns and rifles of exceptional quality in terms of build and engraving design. Masterpieces such as 'The Africa Rifle', 'The India Rifle' and 'The Forest Rifle,' set modern standards in design and embellishment.” 

And what of the artists themselves? What makes a man or woman choose this art form? Leo Lambert, house engraver at Westley Richards, says “There is not a specific type of person in particular who becomes engravers. Many of my engraver colleagues come with very varied backgrounds. But all share qualities which make a good artist in engraving: patience, resilience, curiosity, creativity - and a little bit of madness. Definitely you tend to meet interesting people when you encounter an engraver. Most of the time, they are passionate people whose world revolves around their art to which they have dedicated their life.”

Which means you do not have to travel to the Met in New York to see a masterpiece. This season, your quail-shooting friend might be holding one.