Morphy’s Dec. 16-18 Firearms & Militaria Auction is a virtual arsenal of premier sporting guns, rare NFA and other prized military weapons

DENVER, Pa. – Morphy's will make the holidays merry and bright for many firearms collectors who take part in their December 16-18 auction. The 1,343-lot selection includes expertly-vetted arms, armor, edged weapons and military artifacts, many with important provenance. The auction will be held at Morphy’s flagship gallery in Pennsylvania, with all forms of remote bidding welcome, including absentee, phone and live via the Internet through Morphy Live.

Leading the auction’s gilt-edged lineup is a fabulous pair of Rizzini R1 .410 (choked, modified and improved modified) and 28-gauge (choked improved cylinder and modified) side-by-side shotguns with 23-3/8-inch barrels. Both feature magnificent engraving performed by Angelo Galeazzi, including images of mourning doves and ducks, a rose-and-scroll motif, and more. Both guns were proofed in 1982. The .410 gun bears Italian superior proof marks with 3-inch chambers and the 28-bore gun displays Italian standard proof marks with 2¾-inch chambers. The stocks are highly figured and of exhibition-grade walnut. A superior-quality small-bore set in very high original condition, it is housed in a fine Nizzoli felt-lined leather case.

Another prime lot for the sporting-gun connoisseur is a cased 28-bore J Purdey & Sons over-and-under ejector game gun with 28-inch file-cut vent rib barrels and Prince of Wales stock, with a beautiful program of blackleaf scroll and game-scene vignettes by master engraver Giancarlo Pedretti. Its many features include an engraved grip cap, single non-selective mechanical trigger on round bar action, an auto-safety, hold-open top lever, drop points, single small front bead, SAFE engraved in gold by the beetle-style safety catch, and a gold-inlaid serial number on the bottom strap. Additionally, it has gold-lined cocking indicators, a vacant gold oval on the toe line, a wraparound checkered wrist with mullered borders, checkered forend with mullered borders, and an Anson push-button forend release. Housed in a brass-cornered oak and elephant-hide presentation case with French blocked accessories that include two turnscrews, a chamber brush, and a handle for the two-piece ebony cleaning rod – all with buffalo-horn handles.

Many of the finest NFA firearms ever to reach the auction marketplace have been sold by Morphy’s. Two NFA lots in the December auction are exceptional “must-see” items which will require BATF approval prior to being transferred to their new owners. The first is a factory-original 3-position “S E F” selector Heckler & Koch MP5SD3 registered-receiver 9mm Luger machine gun. According to the “IE” proof code on top of its receiver, the gun was manufactured in 1984. It is marked Made in W Germany / HK Chantilly, Va on the right side of the magazine well, and HK MP5 SD on top of the receiver. This gun is currently fitted with a telescoping stock and an immediately recognizable screw-on factory silencer. It also includes its original fixed shoulder stock, four original straight MP5 HK-marked magazines dated 11/67, one ID-marked 20-round magazine, a green three-cell magazine pouch, and an original H&K sight adjustment tool.

The second NFA lot of special note is a very early German Model MG42/59 machine gun imported and registered by Cadillac Gage (Warren, Mich.) and used to bore-sight vehicle turrets. It has a scarce configuration with a 20-inch barrel and factory-correct 7.62x51mm (.308) NATO caliber/bore using M13 disintegrating links. It is marked with a very low serial number: 61-00001. At the left side of the receiver, forward of the factory markings, it is marked RHEINMETAL GmbH/FRG CADILLAC GAGE WARREN, MICH in electro-pencil. This is the first of the MG42/59s and, as such, should be of utmost interest to collectors.

An incredible gun with a history all its own is an Ithaca Grade 7 NID 410, among the rarest of finely-embellished American double guns. Serial-numbered 448950, it is one of only two .410s made by Ithaca in this grade. This very specimen was famously stolen in 1928 while on display at the Isaac Walton League in Omaha, Nebraska, and sold shortly thereafter. It eventually was returned to its rightful owners and has remained with the family ever since. The entire production of the Grade 7 is listed in The Ithaca Gun Company, From The Beginning by Walter Snyder. Its condition is exceptionally fine, with brilliant bores, beautiful factory embellishment and rose- and yellow-gold inlay. The receiver retains 98% of its gold-wash finish; while the barrels retain 98% of their factory-blued finish. The gun will convey with a copy of an Ithaca factory letter confirming its October 1927 manufacture and noting it to be a single-trigger Grade 7 shipped to Ithaca’s then-marketing director John Boa, for use in the company’s own display of high-grade guns. The gun is fresh to the market.

Manufactured in 1871, a fabulous Conrad Ulrich-signed Model 1866 Winchester rifle was built in .44 Henry Rimfire, is factory-engraved and of exhibition quality. The blued rifle-length octagon barrel is marked toward the breech with a second-style two-line address. It has a drift-adjustable German silver-blade front sight and ladder rear, and its gilt-finished brass frame is signed on the left side of upper tang with three of Ulrich's discreet boxed C F ULRICH touch marks. Its highly-detailed engraving includes imagery of a Native family with a crocodile, a buck and doe in the woods, a saddled horse, Western animal vignettes of a charging bison, standing grizzly bear, and skulking cougar; and more.

A rare late-WWII production, a Gustloff-Werke Volkssturmgewehr 8mm Kurz semi-automatic rifle is of a type that was used primarily by German conscripts pressed into service as a final line of defense. Documented and illustrated in Weaver’s Desperate Measures book, it is one of approximately 10,000 manufactured under contract for the Volkssturm, but few have survived. The barrel was tastefully extended several inches (to 16¼in) to meet US import requirements. This is a nice example of a very scarce German last-ditch assault rifle.

A Colt Single Action Army .38 WCF Revolver manufactured circa 1919 displays full-coverage cattle-brand engraving by Weldon Bledsoe. The cattle brands are shown against a punchdot background with scrollwork accents. The gun is further embellished with nickel plating and gold wash on the ejector rod housing, cylinder, and hammer and is mounted with 2-piece Colt mother-of-pearl grips with a Rampant Colt medallion on each side.

The militaria category includes a unique and distinguished entry: the USMC uniform of Major General Smedley Darlington Butler (1881-1940), one of only two Marines to be awarded two Medals of Honor, and the only officer to claim the title. Butler was one of the most decorated US Marines of all time, with an active-duty career that began in the Spanish-American War. He received 16 medals, including five for heroism, and the Marine Corps Brevet Medal. This unlined summer uniform was made by a Chinese tailor and bears Chinese inked letters to the inside. Believed to have been made during Butler’s 3rd Brigade’s China Expedition, its cloisonne ribbon bars were unquestionably made in China, likely Shanghai, and correspond to Butler’s awards. The uniform (including undershirt and tie) remained with Butler’s family through the early 2000s, before entering the collector community. VG condition.

Morphy’s December 16-18, 2025 Firearms & Militaria Auction will be held at the company’s Denver, Pennsylvania gallery, 2000 North Reading Rd, Denver, PA 17517 starting on all three days at 9AM ET. All forms of bidding will be available, including live via the Internet through Morphy Live. Questions: call 877-968-8880 or email info@morphyauctions.com. Online: www.morphyauctions.com.

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