Southeast Asian caplock arm

pbleed · 25th September 2022, 06:14 PM

Dear Friends,
Please allow me to ask for help with a caplock firearm I acquired today. It was presented to me as “Japanese,” but it certainly is not from Japan. It is a well, but lightly made. I judge it to be a .42 +/- cal, shotgun. It is delicate but well-made and has brass inlay on the top and bottom edges of the stock. And there is a series of stamped character on the side of the stock. I would deeply appreciate assessments. I assume it is a 19th century piece, but where might it be from?
Peter

kahnjar1 · 25th September 2022, 10:10 PM

Hi Peter,
The stamps look to be maybe Burmese but I could be wrong there. I would have thought South East Asian anyway. Can you please post pics of the whole item showing barrel length. The stock appears to be crafted in the English style.
Stu

werecow · 26th September 2022, 02:21 PM

I think they could also be Lao numerals (but if so the picture looks like it's upside down).

Ian · 26th September 2022, 06:37 PM

The inscription is Thai. Your picture is upside down, as noted above. I cannot make out the first two characters, but the rest are Thai numerals as shown in the attached pic.

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werecow · 26th September 2022, 07:20 PM

Hah, yeah, I was looking at the wrong row header in the numerals table.

The first two characters might be letters; นพ.

Ian · 27th September 2022, 01:19 AM

Hi werecow. Yes, I think you are right about the first two characters.

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25th September 2022, 06:14 PM	#1
pbleed Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Little Rock, Arkansas Posts: 88	Southeast Asian caplock arm Dear Friends, Please allow me to ask for help with a caplock firearm I acquired today. It was presented to me as “Japanese,” but it certainly is not from Japan. It is a well, but lightly made. I judge it to be a .42 +/- cal, shotgun. It is delicate but well-made and has brass inlay on the top and bottom edges of the stock. And there is a series of stamped character on the side of the stock. I would deeply appreciate assessments. I assume it is a 19th century piece, but where might it be from? Peter Attached Images

25th September 2022, 10:10 PM	#2
kahnjar1 Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: CHRISTCHURCH NEW ZEALAND Posts: 2,739	Hi Peter, The stamps look to be maybe Burmese but I could be wrong there. I would have thought South East Asian anyway. Can you please post pics of the whole item showing barrel length. The stock appears to be crafted in the English style. Stu Last edited by kahnjar1; 26th September 2022 at 05:56 AM.

26th September 2022, 06:37 PM	#4
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,200	The inscription is Thai. Your picture is upside down, as noted above. I cannot make out the first two characters, but the rest are Thai numerals as shown in the attached pic. . Attached Images

27th September 2022, 01:19 AM	#6
Ian Vikingsword Staff Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: The Aussie Bush Posts: 4,200	Hi werecow. Yes, I think you are right about the first two characters. . Attached Images

26th September 2022, 02:21 PM	#3
werecow Member Join Date: Sep 2021 Location: Leiden, NL Posts: 498	I think they could also be Lao numerals (but if so the picture looks like it's upside down).

26th September 2022, 07:20 PM	#5
werecow Member Join Date: Sep 2021 Location: Leiden, NL Posts: 498	Hah, yeah, I was looking at the wrong row header in the numerals table. The first two characters might be letters; นพ.