Flintlock Rifle with Case and Bullet Mould Made for Colonel Jacob Bates (1746–1836)

Silas Allen Jr.

ca. 1820 · Steel, silver, brass, wood, silver wire · Arms and Armor

Silas Allen produced a large number of muskets for the state militia in addition to custom-made hunting and target rifles for private customers. This rifle is possibly his finest work and ranks among the best New England rifles of the early nineteenth century. Its original owner, Jacob Bates, was a distinguished veteran of the American Revolution. The rifle was acquired for the Metropolitan Museum in 1938 directly from his great granddaughter Ethel C. Morse.

Artist

Silas Allen Jr.

Date

ca. 1820

Medium

Steel, silver, brass, wood, silver wire

Culture

American, Shrewsbury, Massachusetts

Department

Arms and Armor

Credit line

Gift of Christian A. Zabriskie, 1938