#40 • The Iconic Factory Cased Ulrich Panel Engraved Connecticut Foot Guard Presentation Winchester Model 1873 Rifle

Part of Fine Winchesters Auction (live auction by Lewis & Grant Auctions)

Status: No sale

$500,000 - $700,000 .44-40 Caliber, 24" octagonal barrel, S/N 86598 (ca. 1881). Cased in its original deluxe factory leather purple velvet lined casing of leather with brass inscription plaque bearing the engraved initials "T.V.G. to G.F.G.'' The rifle is finished in a rare combination of nickel and gold. Deluxe Highly Figured 3X style burl walnut stocks with checkered pistol grip butt and burl walnut forearm. Nickel set trigger. The left side of the frame Is finely engraved and factory inscribed in John Ulrich’s elegant script: "Presented by the TIBBITS VETERAN CORPS OF TROY N.Y to the 1st COMPANY GOVERNORS FOOT GUARD, Hartford Conn. for Courtesy, June 8th, 1881” in one large oval panel and a finely engraved circular panel featuring a buck standing in a wooded landscape. The right side of the frame is covered in the finest Ulrich floral scroll engraving amidst a rare large interlocking key design within a square panel and an additional superbly executed bear looking out from a rocky cliff under a tree. The rest of the frame is covered in floral scroll engraving. The frame is signed underneath the lever "J. Ulrich". A Winchester Factory letter confirms all deluxe features. An icon to Winchester collectors since its appearance in the 1971 Antique Arms Annual in color plates on pages 95 and 102. The “Foot Guard” Model 1873 was specially commissioned by the Tibbits Corps as a gift in appreciation for the Governor’s Foot Guard, the oldest continuous military organization in America (chartered in 1771 by King George III), hosting the most significant reunion of Civil War veterans. The rifle is the finest condition John Ulrich signed panel scene engraved 1873 Winchester known. The unusual combination of gold and nickel finishes together with the light deluxe walnut stocks, its pristine condition, and original purple velvet lined factory case make the “Foot Guard” 1873 possibly the most beautiful of all Winchester Model 1873 rifles. **The barrel, magazine tube, forend cap, lever,trigger,hammer and buttplate retain 100% of their original bright factory nickel finish. The frame retains all of the luxurious bright Winchester factory gold finish, the deluxe pistol grip fancy wood stock and forearm show 100% of their factory piano varnish finish and no darkening. The leather case has two defective straps however the case is excellent overall both inside and out.** Provenance The state of Connecticut Governor's Guard Herb Glass Senior Richard Prosser Mellon John J. Malloy.