It looks like there was something installed there at some point, now removed. The stock does not have any major damage, though there is a grafted repair on the right butt stock, which we seen on other examples. There is also some pitting along the woodline, very common for a rifle issued in a tropical colony. The metalwork has a worn blued patina, with some light peppering from decades of service and storage. Rifle is in very good used condition, and is solid overall. The bolt is a non-matching arsenal replacement. The end of the barrel is however marked with serial number 9023A, and the magazine, rear sight, barrel band, and other components are marked with shortened number 23. The right side of the receiver is simply marked STEYR 1897, with no other markings present on the receiver. This rifle was manufactured by the Steyr Mannlicher firearms division of Österreichische Waffenfabriksgesellschaft (ŒWG, Austrian Arms-Manufacturing Company) in Austria. Due to the large amount of wear on the rifle, it's very possible that it saw colonial service. It was still in service in some areas until at least 1955, especially by the Royal Netherlands East Indies Army ( Koninklijk Nederlands Indisch Leger or KNIL). This is a very nice example of the Dutch Geweer M.95 Mannlicher Infantry Service rifle, which was the standard Dutch long rifle from 1895 and through WWI.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |