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
GROSJEAN Julien
It is a very beautiful Liège rifle juxtaposed top
break, probably with lock plates, engraved by
Léonard SMEETS,
made for the Parisian gunmaker Charles Maugein. English butt in well veined
walnut. Length (before wood) to push.
Markings
Peron:
inspection since 1853
ELG in an
oval under a crown: acceptance between 1893 and 1968
V and G
under asterisks: countermarks of controllers since 1877
Lion on
PV: smokeless powder test between 1898 and 1968
12-70 in
a coated omega: nominal size and length of the sleeve (since 1924)
Greek
letter theta : annual letter for 1953
602:
number of the weapon
Trademark and a drawing comprising a species of cedar (?) on a ball (?) and a cone and 60884 and 60885: the manufacturing numbers of the barrels by a gunner not identified until now; it is well listed but without any precision, except the mention Whithworth.
Also of interest is the following link : https://shotguncollector.com/2017/06/21/the-beginning-of-the-steel-age/.
On the one hand, we will notice the coat of arms of
Sir Joseph Whitworth, which are related to the design of these barrels, and on
the other hand, the barrels of a rifle of
Auguste LEBEAU,
with also a logo of the same style in the middle of the mention trademark....
Funny, you said weird...
1kg479 :
barrel weight (since 1924)
18.4
choke 18.3: diameter of barrel and choke
VC
crowned
: unidentified (these are certainly
Victor COLLETTE’s
initials, but to my knowledge, he produced only pistols).
On the tape: Made of Sir Joseph Whithworth’s Fluid Pressed Steel made for Charles Maugein Paris. Type of steel produced under pressure patented in 1866 by Sir Joseph Whitworth
(http://www.gracesguide.co.uk/Joseph_Whitworth
and also
http://www.shootinguk.co.uk/answers/what-is-fluid-steel-and-is-it-stronger-than-damascus-steel-13767
and finally
http://firearmshistory.blogspot.be/2014/11/metals-used-in-firearms-xv.html
This
reference is regularly found on weapons, which are usually of high quality.
The engraving was made by
Léonard SMEETS,
engraver and inlayer of SM le Roi (of the Belgians) (patent granted in 1952)
(see the site littlegun.be in the section dedicated to engravers).
GP and PHL
Patents "GROSJEAN
Julien" Rue St Laurent in Liège.
Patent n°
296094, filed on 29 04 1921 and having as its subject "a rocker gun".
Patent
No. 320689, filed on 12 09 1924 and having as its object "a simplification of
the operation of a shotgun plate3".
"Charles
Mangein was an armourer in Paris between 1934 and 1939. However, the canvas
tells us that it was still active in the 1950s-60s, which corresponds well to
the date of manufacture of this beautiful rifle, namely 1953.
I find traces of Monsieur
GROSJEAN
at 295 rue Saint-Laurent between 1925 and 1935 (in short, the directories I
have) and is listed as an armourer. In 1910, he did not live there yet, and in
1938, he did not live there anymore.
So one
could say cautiously that this turntable "could" match his patent but we can't
say that it was made by him!!?
PHL
