Lynx
.224 member
Reged: 11/04/04
Posts: 33
Loc: Rajasthan, India
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Here are a few pic of the then HH Maharaja of jodhpur & his brother on safari in africa. They had a 600 NE though am not sure if they used it on this safari. I was fortunate to have seen the jodhpur family gun room as a kid, row & rows of glass fronted cupboards with the finest firearms.
On one occasion the maharaja had a close shave in India after he was charged by a rogue elephant in musth, he tripped over a root of tree after which the elephant attemted to gore him, both the tusk were on either side of the body stuck in mud. Another person then shot the elephant.
current pic in one of the jodhpur family residence
the photo album
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Nakihunter
.375 member
Reged: 13/10/07
Posts: 588
Loc: New Zealand
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Thanks again for a great post. I remember the Aranmore place in Ooty (Nilgiris) in South India. This was a Jodpur winter palace & had a lot of trophies mounted all around. It has been operated as a hotel / guest house for many years. I haven't been there for over 30 years but I will be visiting a friends jungle lodge near Mudumalai / Bandhipur sanctuary in about a month's time!
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Always shoot through the target & not just at it.
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AspenHill
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Reged: 08/01/03
Posts: 1528
Loc: Vermont, USA
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Very neat, those were the good old days weren't they?
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~Ann
Everyday spent outdoors is the best day of my life.
Aspen Hill Adventures
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88MauSporter
.375 member
Reged: 06/06/07
Posts: 530
Loc: Alaska / Texas
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These are great photos and stories. I am facinated by the old hunting heritage in India and see here how the Africa and India experience was intermingled. OH what a time!! HH Maharaja of jodhpur looks like he could be the brother or more likely, grandfather of my neighbor!!
We here in Texas are blessed with a very large population of free range (now wild) Nilgai and blackbuck from India. These were brought in primarily by the King Ranch family in the 1920's.
The Wildlife dept. of Texas has estimates of Nilgai as high as 30,000 and close on the Blackbuck.
It would be better to be able to hunt in India and be there in that part of history.
Thanks for sharing such a find.
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"A hunter should not use a rifle that will kill an animal when everthing goes right; you should use one that will do the job when everything goes wrong." 88MauSporter
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Lynx
.224 member
Reged: 11/04/04
Posts: 33
Loc: Rajasthan, India
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Quote:
The Wildlife dept. of Texas has estimates of Nilgai as high as 30,000
Nilgai or bluebulls are now a menace in several areas in India. Population has rocketed. In the area I live farmers are fedup & have to patrol their fields at night to protect their crop. Its high time the govt here wakes up & open hunting of nilgai & wildboar.
We have several nilgai on our property at night, last year they ate up most of the flowers in the garden. It could upto a month to get permission from the forest department to shoot a nilgai which is damaging your crop. Most farmers dont bother with the paperwork.
lynx
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88MauSporter
.375 member
Reged: 06/06/07
Posts: 530
Loc: Alaska / Texas
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I have heard similar stories in Italy from people with property or homes. They say that the wild boar have become so over populated that farms and gardens are raided daily. There is hunting limited to very small areas and local control is minimal. People want to, but the strict laws prevent doing anything to most of the boar. One person shot a "blank" starter pistol to scare off an aggresive porker and nearly ended up in jail.
I hope to see some regulated hunting in India. What a great adventure for me.
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"A hunter should not use a rifle that will kill an animal when everthing goes right; you should use one that will do the job when everything goes wrong." 88MauSporter
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shinz
.300 member
Reged: 11/05/08
Posts: 135
Loc: New Zealand
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Lovely photos of a sadly bygone era, ahhh, the good old days. Donning now my plane spotters anorak, can anyone ID the location of the two old airliners at the airport, was it somewhere in India or could it have been Wilson Airport at Nairobi or somewhere else in East Africa. The plane on the left a Handley Page HP42, the one on the right some sort of Armstrong Whitworth from memory. This must have been somewhere around 1934-35 I'd think.
Steve
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Lynx
.224 member
Reged: 11/04/04
Posts: 33
Loc: Rajasthan, India
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Quote:
can anyone ID the location of the two old airliners at the airport, was it somewhere in India or could it have been Wilson Airport at Nairobi or somewhere else in East Africa
Do not think the airport is in India. If I do visit Jodhpur I will try & have a look at the shooting diaries.
lynx
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4seventy
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Reged: 07/05/03
Posts: 2210
Loc: Queensland Australia
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Lynx,
Those sure are great photos.
Thanks for posting them.
A well known Australian hunter used to own a double which at one time was owned by Maharaj Ajit Singh.....Jodhpur.
It was a Webley PHV-1 450-400 NE 3" by Manton.
This was back in the 1980's and I don't know if he still owns it.
I just love looking at old hunting photos like these. 
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Lynx
.224 member
Reged: 11/04/04
Posts: 33
Loc: Rajasthan, India
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Quote:
A well known Australian hunter used to own a double which at one time was owned by Maharaj Ajit Singh.....Jodhpur
Maharaj Ajit Singh nicknamed 'ponk' was Maharaja Umaid Singh younger brother, both brothers are in the picture above, for a close up look at the buff pic.
I am told some members of the Jodhpur family preferred regular V shaped rear sights on their double rifle instead of the shallow V usually found on DR.
Lynx
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gryphon
.450 member
Reged: 01/01/03
Posts: 5487
Loc: Sambar ground/Victoria/Austral...
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They had a 600 NE though am not sure if they used it on this safari.
Would the pills in the second pic possibly be 600`s?
A q`s for the experts,how about suggesting the weights of the tusks in pic number 6.
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Get off the chair away from the desk and get out in the bush and enjoy life.
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shinz
.300 member
Reged: 11/05/08
Posts: 135
Loc: New Zealand
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From years of studying & drooling over photos such as these where the weights were given, certainly 100 pounds plus each the whole lot of them & depending on the height of the people in the photo to give scale & other variables such as the size of the nerve cavities & whether they're rounded or flattened (unlikely) some of these could easily go 140-150 pounds, beyond that, you would need to be a better guesser than me or to have first hand knowledge of similar sized tusks & there're a dwindling no. of people left alive today who've done so. Such tusks as these are very much a feature of a bygone era.
Steve.
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gryphon
.450 member
Reged: 01/01/03
Posts: 5487
Loc: Sambar ground/Victoria/Austral...
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Good to see someone stuck their neck out with an estimate.
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Get off the chair away from the desk and get out in the bush and enjoy life.
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4seventy
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Reged: 07/05/03
Posts: 2210
Loc: Queensland Australia
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The cartridges you can see in photo 2 do not look anywhere near big enough in diameter to be .600 NE.
Rifle in photo 1 looks like it could be a Holland, so maybe those cases are more like 500-450 NE or similar?
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Nickudu
.300 member
Reged: 23/07/04
Posts: 149
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A superb post! I appreciate your sharing, very much, indeed.
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bigmaxx
.375 member
Reged: 13/06/07
Posts: 660
Loc: Bowling Green KY U.S.A.
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What a marvelous collection. Thank you for sharing them!
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One day at a time...
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Will
.333 member
Reged: 04/02/03
Posts: 303
Loc: Kansas
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Heartbreak, but fantastic, photos. Thanks.
All those tusks appear to be in the 115 to 140 lb. category. Big, eh?
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_________________________________________________
Bill Stewart
Once you have been amongst them, there is no such thing as too much gun.
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mickey
.416 member
Reged: 05/01/03
Posts: 4647
Loc: Pend Oreille Valley, Idaho
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Any idea on who the PH was?
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Lovu Zdar
Mick
A Man of Pleasure, Enterprise, Wit and Spirit Rare Books, Big Game Hunting, English Rifles, Fishing, Explosives, Chauvinism, Insensitivity, Public Drunkenness and Sloth, Champion of Lost and Unpopular Causes.
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mikeh416Rigby
.450 member
Reged: 24/02/03
Posts: 6051
Loc: The beautiful Oley Valley, PA....
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Great photos! Thanks for sharing them with us.
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Lynx
.224 member
Reged: 11/04/04
Posts: 33
Loc: Rajasthan, India
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Quote:
Any idea on who the PH was?
No idea mick. Am sure all the details would be in the family shooting diary.
lynx
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NitroX
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Reged: 25/12/02
Posts: 40695
Loc: Barossa Valley, South Australi...
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Lynx
Thanks again for the old photos. Always very appreciated and enjoyed. Don't stop if you have more!
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John aka NitroX
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Govt get out of our lives NOW!
"I love the smell of cordite in the morning."
"A Sharp spear needs no polish"
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