On the hunt for Ireland’s rare guns

A gun famously presented to Bertie Ahern by Ian Paisley during a ceremony on the site of the Battle of the Boyne sold at auction in Belfast this summer for £20,000 (about €28,000).

The 17th century Flintlock Carbine, which was reputedly used in the battle, went under the hammer in July at Ross Auctioneers in Belfast and was bought by a telephone bidder.

The gun had been given to then taoiseach Bertie Ahern during an historic meeting of reconciliation in May 2007 at the Battle of the Boyne site by the late Dr Ian Paisley, then first minister of Northern Ireland. It then went on display in the Battle of the Boyne visitor centre at Donore near Drogheda.

But it subsequently emerged that the gun was a loan to the Irish State – and not a gift.

Dr Paisley had, in fact, borrowed it from a private collector in Co Antrim who since requested its return and consigned it to auction.

Replica

A replica of the gun is now on display in the museum. The auctioneers said the “extremely rare gun” was in “beautiful condition” and had “almost certainly been employed at the Siege of Derry and the Battle of the Boyne”.

The gun, which is made of ash and brass fittings, was made by 17th-century London craftsman George Fisher Jnr, a gunsmith to the crown, at premises near the Tower of London and, ironically, is marked with the cipher of James II which means it was used by a Catholic officer.

The strong price achieved at the auction is illustrative of the potential value of rare and collectible Irish guns.

London auctioneers Bonhams is now on the lookout for Irish sporting guns for forthcoming specialist auctions in London and owners can sometimes be pleasantly surprised by the valuations they receive.

"The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are a treasure house for sporting guns because of the many people here who take part in game shooting regularly or who inherited guns from fathers or grandfathers who were keen sportsmen," according to Patrick Hawes, director of Bonhams sporting guns department.

Mr Hawes is planning a series of valuation days in Ireland later this month to “search for more guns for sale in London” at specialist auctions.

Mr Hawes will be in Dublin on Monday , September 14th and Belfast on September 15th and said he “would urge anyone thinking of selling their guns to go to their gun cabinet and bring along the weapon they need a valuation on”.

VIP owners

He said shotguns and sporting rifles have been doing very well at sale particularly if their condition is good or if they had a VIP previous owner.

Mr Hawes said that the last time he was in Ireland he unearthed "a number of fine rifles made for Viscount Castlereagh [of Mount Stewart, Co Down]; a decorated soldier who took part in many of the final cavalry charges of the British army and a statesman best remembered for his tenure as secretary of state for air in the 1930s. His fine .303 rifles made by Westley Richards and J Rigby & Co made £13,000 and £28,000 respectively".

Mr Hawes said: “Once you have factored in the key aspects of gun buying at auction – quality, condition, rarity – you then find that it’s the weapon’s previous owners that add lustre to its provenance and price.

For example, anything previously owned by an Indian maharajah or one of the British royal family or well-known professional hunters will have an automatic supplement in perceived value and as often as not a few zeroes added to the price when sold.”

Guns with VIP status sold by Bonhams sporting guns department include: James Bond author, Ian Fleming's colt Python .357 magnum revolver; the King of Romania's Purdey; and, the Holland & Holland owned by African white hunter explorer Frederick Selous.

For an appointment to have a gun valued, contact Bonhams’ Dublin office at 31 Molesworth Street, Dublin 2.