A pair of shotguns from Arran that were hand-made for King Edward VII are being sold at auction on December 17.
The guns were originally commissioned by Queen Victoria for her son Albert Edward and are expected to fetch £70,000. The guns left royal ownership after Edward exchanged them with his good friend the 12th Duke of Hamilton.
A spokesman for the auctioneers said: ‘Many of Prince Edward’s friends were drawn from the aristocracy of the day, which included the Duke of Hamilton. The two friends shared a love of field sports and Edward visited the Duke’s Arran estate many times.
‘It was on one of these shooting trips with the Duke that Edward was said to be unhappy with the way he was shooting.
‘The story goes that the Duke offered his own guns for His Royal Highness to try out and he was so delighted by the improvement in his performance that they agreed a permanent exchange.’
The royal shotguns stayed in the Duke’s family ever since and are being sold on the open market for the first time. One is inscribed with the message ‘Albert Edward Novr 9th 1870’ surrounding the crest of the Prince of Wales. Lady Jean Fforde said: ‘We’ve had them in the family for years but my son has decided to sell them.’
The antique 16 bore guns are being sold at Holt’s Auctioneers winter sale at Princess Louise House, London.
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