POTD: Solid Silver Winchester 1866 – Eat Your Heart Out King Midas
Sam.S 11.23.21
Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Today we have a really unique and special specimen in this solid silver Winchester 1866. This Winchester was a specially made rifle that was engraved by German-American Master Engraver L.D. Nimschke and presented to the president of Peru. This solid silver Winchester 1866 is about as close as you can get to a literal solid silver firearm. The frame, forend, buttplate, and carrier block are all of solid silver. I did read from Rock Island Auction company’s fantastic writeup that the silver allegedly came from Peru’s silver mines.
“In our opinion, this rifle is unquestionably the most incredible and distinctive of all firearms engraved by legendary German-American Master Engraver L.D. Nimschke and certainly the most extravagant Winchester ever created…
Unquestionably Nimschke himself regarded this rifle as the finest and most deluxe and significant of all his guns. So proud was he that he signed it seven times, including on the bottom of the frame…Made as a presentation from the president of Peru, Jose Balta, to the president of Bolivia, Mariano Melgarejo. “
Photo Curtesy of Rock Island Auction Company
https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/84/18/ld-nimschke-engraved-silver-winchester-model-1866-rifle
