That 8x57I rifle is a collecto’s item in it’s own right. It’s an early Suhl made Mauser, built on a Mauser, Oberndorf commercial action. The Mauser serial number 11927 dates the action to 1905. It was originally proofed in Suhl. As the German proofs were not accepted in Austria then, R.Mahrholdt, owner of the Peterlongo shop, had it reproofed by the Ferlach proofhouse in 1906. So the rifle is as old as Jim Corbett’s famous Rigby Mauser. The long leade in the barrel was a common feature of 8x57I barrels to accommodate the long, cylindrical 227 gr bulles. Even today the CIP prescribes a 42 mm = 1.65” long freebore from case mouth to rifling for 8x57I chambers.
"You never pay too much for something, you only buy it too early. Buying something unseen and unknown may get really expensive.”