Thanks for the complements and all the information.

The A11 is in the picture in front of the trigger guard, a bit faint.

I asked the Purdey guy about this...and you guys know your stuff!

From Purdey:-

Dear Mr. Rowe

A11 has no description recorded against it, but A12 was a Martini sold in 1886, so perhaps my previous theory was wrong, and it is later than I had suspected. We could account for the earlier address by it having been held on stock for some time, although if you could send me a photograph of where the serial number appears, I can better assess whether it is correct, or irrelevant.

Ridiculous as this may seem, retailed arms often turn up without the number, so it would not necessarily be unusual to find them without any retail serial number. However, that we put the address on does suggest that it should also bear a number (later A series arms I have seen were not engraved with our address).

In terms of the action itself, I believe if you look up either the Mark 1 military action, or perhaps even the trials pattern, you will find the safety catch. However, civilian rifles do not always correspond directly to military models, as one has different requirements to the other.

I hope that is of some assistance.

Yours sincerely

Nicholas Harlow
Gun Sales Team