Lot Essay
No. 22 was one of a unique stand of thirty-five rifled muskets complete with bayonets and accessories ordered by the Earl of Tankerville of Chillingham Castle, Northumberland, to arm a body of yeomanry. The order was completed between February 1832 and June 1833. Numbers '1' to '33' were virtually identical, whilst '34' and '35' were of higher quality and were intended for use by Lord Tankerville and his son, Lord Ossulston. See L. Patrick Unsworth, The Early Purdeys, pp. 106-107, plates 92-93