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
Martine or Martiny ?
Weapons
It is about a pair of piostols flintlock of the type First Empire.
The barrel in Damas is probably smooth, it is fixed at the wodd by a key and the tail of breech. It’s equipped with a small front sight but not with bead. The calibre is unknown for me.
A rod out of wooden is fixed under the barrel using two pass-rod metal.
The lock round is “with the French” with a hammer in swan neck with split capscrew.
Against lock is worked and represents two lions lying. A second screw represents a head of sheep. An identical decoration was raised on a weapon of BERLEUR Guillaume which was contemporary.
The stick out of wooden of walnut is cut “First empire”, it is squared with the “catch in hand” and the intersections are furnished with small silver nails.
The metal cap carries an animalist engraving representing of the birds.
The stick also carries incrustations of silver wire.
The trigger and the trigger guard are also richly decorated with animalist and different representations.
Punches
The weapon does not carry any punches of the proofhouse of Liège (on the photographs in any case) we can deduce from it that it was manufactured before the decree of the Napoleon Emperor concerning the proofhouse in Liege and who goes back to 1810.
Marks
The only visible mark on these two weapons is MARTINE à LIEGE engraved on the lock.
No arms manufacturer of this name appears in the list of the arms manufacturers of this time.
The good orthography was not the first virtue of the manufacturers of the time, the majority were illiterate. It’s thus possible that it is acted in fact of MARTINI!
Several arms manufacturers of the time carry this patronymic but the information with regard to them is quite thin, we thus raise:
MARTINI Henri Nicolas commercial of weapons.
MARTINI Martin furbisher
An act of constitution of a partnership “MOUILLET & Co” in 1785 fact state of Nicolas Mouillet - Nicolas MARTINI and J.A. Gerlache. (Gaier C. 5 centuries of Arms manufacture inhabitant of Liège)
Also let us note at same time MARTINY Hubert Nicolas, father and wire, street Neuvice in Liege in 1810 and MARTINY-CAPPADOCE Chaussée Holy Gilles in Liege about 1810.
GG
