Product Details
JOSEPH LANG & SON
A MATCHED PAIR OF LIGHTWEIGHT 12-BORE SINGLE-TRIGGER SIDELOCK EJECTORS, serial no. 14518 / 14684,
28in. nitro barrels, No.1 replacements (by the makers in 1945), No.2 nitro reproved, ribs gold-inlaid '1' and '2', tubes engraved 'JOSEPH LANG & SON. 7, BURY STREET. ST. JAMES'S. LONDON.', 2 1/2in. chambers, bored approx. true cyl. and 1/4 choke, wall thicknesses below recommended minimum, carved fences, toplevers gold-inlaid '1 and '2', automatic safeties with gold-inlaid 'SAFE' details, cocking-indicators, non-selective single triggers, fine border and acanthus scroll engraving, brushed bright and reblued finish overall, 14 1/2in. figured stocks, No.1 a replacement by the makers in 1970 with matching fore-end wood, No.2 including 1 1/2in. wooden extension, weight 6lb. 3oz., in a repaired lightweight leather motor case
Provenance: The makers have kindly informed us that this pair of shotguns were completed with 28in. barrels for R. Guinness. The No.1 gun was finished November 1907 with the No.2 gun being built to match in 1910. They have also informed us that they re-barrelled the No.1 gun in 1945.
Research has established that the gentleman referred to above is possibly Rupert Guinness, 2nd Earl of Iveagh.
Rupert Edward Cecil Lee Guinness, K.G., C.B., C.M.G., V.D., A.D.C., F.R.S. was born in London 29th March 1874 into the landed Anglo-Irish family whose English seat is the Elveden Estate in Suffolk. He was educated at Eton (where he proved to be a fine oarsman) before going up to Cambridge and thence into the Irish Hospital Corps where he served during the Boer War.
Aside from his political and philanthropic interest, Guinness was a keen and able agronomist. He brought great improvements to Elvedon by adding brewers' grains (as head of the noted brewers he would had had ample supply of this) to the predominantly sandy soil, thereby enriching it and creating a far better seed bed. He was also responsible for bringing-on what was already a fine shooting estate.
It was during his tenure of Elvedon that the Guinness Book of World Records came into existence, and its origins are worthy of note: One of the Guns on a shoot in 1951 was Sir Hugh Beaver. As managing director of the brewing giant, he was always keen to find new ways of keeping the Guinness brand in the public eye. He and Iveagh were in discussion over which was the fastest game bird in Europe, the grouse or the golden plover. From this stemmed the idea that the brewers should give their backing to a book giving details of the extremes of science, nature and biology. The first edition was published in 1955 and topped the British bestseller lists by Christmas the same year.
Lord Iveagh's only son, Arthur, was killed in action while serving in Belgium during the last year of the war. So it was that his son, Benjamin, became the 3rd Earl of Iveagh on the death of Rupert Guinness on 14th September 1967.
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Estimate £3,000-5,000
S2