Some of the most beautiful work of this craftsman, and many others, are in this book “Liège Gunmakers through their Work. 1800 - 1950”.
For more detail see: LIEGE GUNMAKERS
Jean François MOUILLET
The weapon.
It acts of a flintlock of cavalry, with civil destination. The turntable round is "to the Frenchman" and engraved volutes. The hammer is in swan neck, the trigger is bent under a brass trigger guard. All the accessories out of brass are richly decorated with grotesque masks and other decorations. Brass against-platinum or carry-screw finely is engraved and cut out.
The grip in drowning door of the lips goshawks of embeddings the probably smooth gun is with sides, of a calibre of 15 mm and a 33.5 mm length. The overall length of the weapon is 50 cm. It carries elegant engravings to the thunder.
Markings.
The rules of the furnisher of July 1700, stipulated that each craftsman was obliged to affix his mark on behind gun so that one can recognize which Master had furnished it. It is well the case here, Jean François MOUILLET (1729/1732) affixed his name on the turntable, its initial JFM in a gilded rectangle as well as a "horse with two heads" This last mark was perhaps the ensign commercial of this craftsman, practical usual at the time. That of C NIQUET was "the gold saddle".
This kind of gilded engravings is rather rare in arms manufacture of Liège, it acted rather of a Spanish practice. Besides rather extravagant decoration leaves us think that this weapon was intended for "Raising".
The resemblance to the weapons of NIQUET is enough striking, I want of them for proof the photographs of a weapon of NIQUET (contemporary of MOUILLET) joined to present.
GG
Niquet (extract of the bulletin 79 of the Museum of Liège with my grateful thanks)
