The two guns making up the pair of Purdey over & under 12-bores pictured here are not quite what they seem.
When they arrived, I thought they were, unusually beautiful, late 1970s or early 1980s guns, engraved by Ken Hunt.
However, the serial numbers and Purdey’s own records show this not to be the case. Well, not entirely.
They were completed in 1957 and were made, like all Purdey over & under guns at the time, on the 1913 Charles Woodward, William Evershed & Charles Hill patent action (No.4986).
Purdey had secured the rights to use this when his company absorbed James Woodward & Sons in 1949. Up until that point in time, Purdey had not managed to settle on an over & under gun that stood up to the Boss in terms of elegance, functionality and desirability.
From 1949 onwards, the Woodward over & under became the Purdey over & under and this pair, made almost twelve years after the deal had been struck bear Purdey’s name on the locks and ribs.
The Woodward action remains a Purdey model today and its design genius has stood the test of time. Woodward gets the credit but it was largely designed by Birmingham gunmaker Charles Hill.
The most notable feature of Hill’s patent is the bifurcation of the lumps, which interlock with dove-tails on the inner walls of the action bar, thereby producing a very stable action, which is much lower in profile than actions with an under-lump and hook arrangement.
With their beautiful stock shape and distinctive Woodward grips, these are supremely elegant game guns. However, as mentioned at the top of this article, they are not as they once were. In fact, they began life in the field with standard fine rose and scroll engraving.
They were bought from the original owner by a prolific collector from overseas, who enjoyed taking ‘plain’ guns and re-imagining them as exhibition grade masterpieces. At the time, supply and delivery from Purdey was problematic and there were questions about quality during what was a difficult period for British gunmakers.
From what information I have been able to gather, the gentleman concerned took these guns to another London gunmaker and had the old fine scroll polished off.
He then had Britain’s foremost engraver of the day, Ken Hunt, re-engrave them with his distinctive deep scroll and the addition of gold game birds and waterfowl relief engraved on the locks and actions.
Ken Hunt was apprenticed to Harry Kell, whose studios carried out some to the best gun engraving of the first quarter of the 20th century and can be found adorning guns of the pre-war period by Watson Bros, Rigby, Blanch and Purdey, among others. Kell later moved to Purdey full time and it is there he met the young Ken Hunt.
Ken Hunt is still working and concentrates on gun-style engraving on jewellery, now he is in his ninth decade. In the 1980s he was in his pomp and probably the most recognised and in-demand gun engraver in the world.
These guns represent Hunt’s distinctive style of the time perfectly. Gun engraving fashions change and this helps us recognise engravers and eras but Ken Hunt’s artistry remains evident when looking a these guns from any angle.
I have no receipts to divulge the cost of the work almost four decades ago but to have it done today would cost sixty or seventy thousand pounds, I expect. I wonder if any modern engraver could quite catch the style of Ken in his heyday? The work here shows a legend’s best work, from arguably his most distinctive and iconic period.
The guns must have seen little use before the re-modelling was carried out. They remain in very good mechanical and cosmetic condition. The leather -covered anti-recoil pads look a little aged but the woodwork and metalwork remain outstanding, and the guns function and handle exactly as they should.
They have been kept with their original Purdey motor-case, with each gun breaking down (barrels above action) for ease of transport. The case has its original canvas outer protector.
Purdey over & under guns build on the Woodward patent action, which remains the jewel in the crown of the firm’s numerous models, now start at £185,000, with standard fine scroll engraving.
I would estimate this pair of guns, cased and engraved to this standard, to cost in the region of £420,000 in 2026. However, Ken Hunt is no longer taking commissions and to secure such a beautiful example of his (and Purdey’s) best work is an opportunity that may come only once in a lifetime.
With their low, solid ribs, long, Woodward-grip stocks, double triggers and incredible condition, they would make the most wonderful pair of game guns for days when a little showing-off might be good for the soul. Truly unique.
Diggory Hadoke
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