Need help, what is it?

[JamesA]

My wife inherited this from her father. It originally came from the Altoona, Pennsylvania area. It's missing parts obviously, but any help identifying it would be appreciated. We have no back story for it other than her father said it had been in the family for generations.

 

[2 shots]

hi, boot pistol, most likely made in belgium.

 

[leadhoarder]

What are the grooves at the muzzle for? Is it a screw pistol and that is for the wrench?

 

[D. Buck Stopshere]

I believe the grooves are for a barrel wrench that would have accompanied the pistol's owner. Sometimes referred to as "muff pistols", they were carried by women and concealed in their fur muff that kept their hands warm.

When the hammer is cocked, the trigger springs out from the frame. Many of these pistols had a box lock design as the hammer "sits" inside the frame.

I suspect parts will be hard to find unless it was made in the US. The pistol is a very common antique firearm found in the US. Many were made in Belgium, France, and England.

 

[TFoley]

This one was made in Belgium between 1810 and 1846 - the ELG over star on the breech says so.

I'd head toward the [much] later date, as it has no evidence of having ever been anything except percussion - these guns were, frankly not worth the cost of converting.

You'll probably NEVER find any parts for it - they were made literally by the tens of thousand by hundreds of Ateliers in Liége over a period of about a hundred years....