Читать книгу Gun Digest 2011 онлайн

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“Best Gun” double rifles are rightfully considered the very apex of the gunmaker’s art. While double rifles were and are made elsewhere, English ones are universally considered superior to all others; and H&H is acknowledged to be the “Best of the Best” maker of this unique type of firearm. The firm’s origins go back to 1848 when Harris John Holland set up shop as a gunmaker in London. By 1876, he had been joined by his nephew, William Harris Holland, and the new firm, Holland & Holland, was located at 98, New Bond Street, London W1—as fashionable a shopping district as could be found in Victorian times. Holland & Holland are still very much in business today. While the names of their clientele may be different, neither the quality of their guns nor their stratospheric prices have changed. They are still the “Royal Gun Makers” in every sense. TR’s “Royal” grade double, serial number 19109, was a product of the best efforts of the best craftsmen in the world, a monument to H&H’s artisans, their skill, and the firm’s traditions, as much as to its one-time owner’s passion for the hunt.