Albanian Rat tail Miquelet pistols

[Marcus]

Pistols identified as "Rat tail Miquelets" have a pretty distinctive style so it is easy to identify them. There always seem to be a few for sale on the internet, so a fair number of them must have been made. Antony Tirri identifies them as contract pieces made in Albania for the Ottoman Turks. That might explain why, although each was probably hand-made and no two are identical, they are all basically of the same design. Does anyone know what sort of troops these pistols would have been issued to?

Also, I just purchased a Tanchika long gun. I'll post pictures in a couple of days once I get it home. It really seems like the match piece for my Albanian rat tail. The vendor claims that one of the marks is a Turkish proof. There is also an inscription on the barrel. Does anyone know if these long guns were also contract pieces for the Turks and what sort of service they would have seen.

Thanks,
Marcus