Forums.NitroExpress.com

Yesterday (9-21-05) a 577 Snider DB howdah by Holland & Holland was auctioned off at Holts. If you go to Holts website you may view color photos of the pistol. It is chambered, as were most, for the .577 Snider Short as opposed to the full length rifle round. The two howdahs that I presently own are marked .577 Snider (Sht.). This is a pretty rare round but can easily be made by trimming the standard rifle case. One of mine was made by Williamson-London, and the other by Lyon & Lyon - London and Calcutta. I also own a cased set of 15 bore (.69 caliber) Mortimer howdahs that are rifled and fire a 550-600 grain lead ball. My Lyon & Lyon howdah will chamber and fire the full length rifle round but of course it should be loaded down to pistol specification. The Holts pistol was estimated to fetch 3,000-5,000 pounds and was sold once before at Butterfields in October 2004 bringing $7350.00. These weapons are great examples of hand-held "magnum" power of a time long past. They are rare and valuable and not near as common as the .577 Enfield chambered 4-barrel Lancaster type "howdahs" that are grossly under powered for there intended purpose. These hammerless 4-barrel Lancaster pattern pistols were made strictly for personal protection against men hence the pip squeek .577 Revolver chambering. The Mortimer set was used by their original owner Capt. Robert Kirkwood to dispatch Maori warriors in the New Zealand Wars. Cavalry officers who could afford such a set saw their real value as DB horse pistols to kill a Tasmanian Devil or a Dervish or to at least ham string an opponents horse in a cavalry charge. These big pistols killed far more people than tigers. Regards, Poacher.

Post Extras