.13 Tiger Stock on Gun

©Collection Robin Wigington

Flint-lock Sporting Gun for super-imposed charges ; Seringapatam, 1793-4 Steel, with gold and silver; chased, chiselled and cast decoration, including tiger stripes (bubris) and tiger motifs. Wooden stock inlaid with silver stripes, the tiger with gold eyes and ebonised tiger stripes; one of the chased silver mounts shows two Royal Mysore tigers biting the two-headed eagle of Mysore; another depicts tigers mauling human figures. Lock and safety catch both in the form of a tiger, the former chiselled and inlaid with tiger stripes. The barrel has inscriptions inlaid in gold and silver. Length 138cm Asad Khan Muhammad For Tipu Sultan

		ipu's firearms were unique at this period, being signed and dated by the master craftsman who made them. The gun is signed Asad Khan Muhammad and dated Seringapatam, 1793/94. The Persian inscription reads: 'The peerless gun of the Khusrauw of India/which with its shaft of forked lightning/can seal the fate of his adversary/if it is aimed at his forehead.' Similar inscriptions, with tiger motifs, appear on the blades of Tipu's swords. This is one of the most splendid of all Tipu's firearms, and decorated with numerous examples of Tipu's personal motifs. In addition to the carved and inlaid tiger on the stock, the internal cock is in the shape of a tiger, with a tiny tiger on its back, serving as the thumb piece for the sliding safety catch. The dark steel of the barrel is inlaid with innumerable tiger stripes in silver and at the end of the barrel, a silver tiger stands as the foresight. The silver escutcheon, side plate, butt plate and trigger guard all incorporate tiger scenes in low relief, and the flash pan and frizzen are in the form of a bubri or stylised tiger stripe. After Tipu's death, this gun was presented to Lord Cornwallis, Commander-in-Chief during the third Mysore War in recognition of his continued service in India. He was twice Governor General (1786 and 1797) and much involved in questions of reform within the Army in India. Another Tipu gun and a Tipu sword were once owned by one of Scotland's most famous authors, Sir Walter Scott. The sword has not been found, but a musketoon, dated 1793-4 and made in the Court workshop was recently identified in the Armoury assembled by Sir Walter for Abbotsford, his house on the Scottish Borders. Our knowledge and appreciation of Tipu firearms, with their unique decoration and technical developments, has been extended immeasurably by the enthusiasm and dedicated research of one man, Robin Wigington. His survey of Tipu firearms, after more than 25 years of research, assesses both the technical and the artistic aspects of the subject and also explains the control marks and the Maludi era of dates, which Tipu introduced in 1786/87. "In the field of decoration and design, no firearms manufacturer has ever worked so consistently within such close confines over such a period," the author concludes. Fortunately, a significant number of these superb firearms have been preserved in public collections, where they may still be seen today.