Paint primer on old weapons?

[M ELEY]

Thank you so much, Michael, for coming in on this subject. The red/lead painted finish on the Schloss example has the exact type of primed surface as the Dutch sword I've listed in the recent thread. It is very interesting that you note that many of these "coatings", especially with black paint, were put on items later for conservation and mention the time frame starting circa 18th century. It does seem that in my research, that is also when the process began in earnest with naval weapons and such. It stands to reason then that perhaps the lion-hilt sword of which I speak might have had the paint down at it's creaion, circa 1650 or perhaps a century later for preservation reasons. I appreciate the input and must again congratulate you on your one-of-a-kind early hand gun! Your exquisite collection easily rivals or beats most museum collections I've seen!

Mark