Original British East India Company Model C Musket in As-Found Untouched Condition with Relic Sling Original Items

Original Item: Only One Available. We offered these as “Cleaned and Complete” for years, and our stock of these from the Royal Armory of Nepal was completely depleted. However, during one of our warehouse open houses years ago, one of our customers selected this example in uncleaned condition, which we have now purchased back and are making available for sale in its original condition.

This is a very nice EIC Model “C” Musket, in .75 bore and with 39″ standard length barrel, in completely unrestored “as found” condition. It originates from our purchase from the kingdom of Nepal, and this variant is the rarest of the Percussion Muskets that we found. The model “C” was only produced over a 2 year period, while the Model E/F Muskets were produced right up to 1851, and had 6 times the production quantity of the Model C.

The lock on this example is fully functional, though a bit stiff due to dirt and wear. The barrel has the “feet” marking, so this is most likely an EIC musket produced or assembled in the subcontinent, usually with a mix of British and locally made parts. Aside from the condition, the only real issue is the missing brass nose cap, very common to see on these. The original sling is in relic condition, already torn through, and very close to cracking in several areas.

Possibly the last Model C that we will be able to offer, ready to you to clean up or display as is!

Specifications-

Years of Manufacture: Late 1840s.
Caliber: .75″
Ammunition Type: Cap and Ball
Barrel Length: 39 Inches
Overall Length: 55 Inches
Action type: Side Action Percussion Lock
Feed System: Muzzle Loading

Official records tell us that the British East India Company procured or made no Flintlock Muskets after the late 1820s and it appears they were very swift to take advantage of the newest in firearms technology- the percussion ignition system. In 1840 the EIC began producing the world’s very first massed produced percussion musket that later became known as the EIC Model “C”.

A brief history of how this model came to being- The shortened 39″ barrel Brown Bess musket was first developed and adopted by the EIC in 1771. This was a full 25 years before the Board of Ordnance in London followed suit with a 39″ Brown Bess Musket dubbed the “India Pattern” in 1796. This is a testament that private enterprise has seemingly always got things done long before government bureaucrats. In 1839 the British Government officially adopted a converted to percussion Brown Bess musket (P-1796/39) but in the Great Fire of the Tower of London of 1841 over 400,000 of these converted Muskets were destroyed leaving the British Government very short handed. The result, once again, was to copy the current EIC Percussion Musket, the Model “F” and designate it the “Lovell’s Pattern of 1842”. By that time, the EIC had already developed and refined the .75 bore Percussion musket through six models- A to F.

Models A and B were EIC flintlock muskets converted to percussion. However, the Model C was the very first purpose built percussion issue, although, it appeared to be a conversion; it was in fact made from all new percussion oriented parts. It was fitted with what was referred to as an “Old Series” side lock that looks like it was once a flintlock. It was also originally intended only to accept the Brown Bess socket bayonet secured on the foresight block. In general the vast majority of these “Old Series” muskets were later adapted with either Hanoverian or the Model F bayonet catches. The differences between the various EIC Models are generally minor; as stated Model A and B were Brown Bess flintlock conversions, Model C and D were purpose built percussion muskets but had the “Old Series” side locks with differing trigger guard styles, while the Model E and F both had the “new series” side locks and had either the Hanoverian Catch on the Model E or the EIC bayonet catch on the Model F.

Please See David Harding’s stellar work Smallarms of the East India Company 1600-1856, published in four volumes by Foresight Books in 1997. Specifically, please see Volume 2, pages 97-124 for a mass of information concerning the vary EIC Model muskets.

NOTE: International orders of antique firearms MUST be shipped using UPS WW Services (courier). USPS Priority Mail international will not accept these. International customers should always consult their country’s antique gun laws prior to ordering.