As the largest military force in Europe during the 19th Century, the British empire had a heavy influence on the world's firearm design. Many countries copied British guns when arming their own militaries. This is the case with this "New Land Pattern" Pistol made by the Ottoman Empire between 1840 and 1860.
The New Land Pattern was originally designed by the East India Co. in 1796. The British military and the East India Co. had a very close relationship throughout the late 18th and early 19th Century. Both firms contracted quite heavily with England's gunmakers to provide weapons for their soldiers. In most cases the guns made for the East India Co. were direct copies of those made for the British military, however because the EIC was a private firm, non subject to the strict regulations set forth by the Board of Ordnance, the company had more freedom to order modifications to the guns they purchased in order to suit their needs. In some cases, the modifications made by the EIC proved to be quite handy; and were sometimes adopted for use by the British Military. An early example of this is the "India Pattern" Brown Bess - simplified version of the British Brown Bess musket that was first ordered by the East India Co. in the late 18th Century, but was subsequently adopted as the "Third Pattern" Brown Bess by the British Military after the EIC guns were proved to be robust, and more importantly cheaper to produce than the Shortland Pattern Bess.
In some rare cases, collaboration between the EIC and British gunmakers ended up creating entirely new arms that were subsequently adopted by the military. The best example of this is the New Land Pattern pistol. These pistols were developed for the EIC in 1796. They featured large robust locks, .65 caliber smoothbore barrels, and "captured" ram rod that was retained with a swivel to prevent the loss of the rod when reloading on horseback. These large pistols were used by the EIC for six years before they were officially adopted by the British army in 1802. They remained in service from 1802 through 1815. The New Land Pattern pistols found their way into the Middle East through various British Colonial activities in the area where it was copied by arsenals in Turkey for use by Ottoman troops.
Information on Ottoman guns is very limited and there is little indication regarding exactly when these pistols were made. What is known is that they were in use by the Turkish Cavalry during the Crimean War. In fact, most of the the Ottoman Infantry was also armed with flintlocks arms during Crimea. These pistols saw limited use by the Ottoman Navy as well.
This pistol is a good example of one of the Turkish New Land Pattern pistols. It remains in good condition and has a great patina; indicating that it was never refinished of buffed. The lock plate features a cryptic Turkish arsenal cypher. The lock holds solid on both full and half cock, and the frizzen opens and closes with good spring tension.
The 9" smooth bore barrel is dark and pitted, while the external appearance of the barrel features a nice patina with no major rust or pitting.
The stock retains crisp edges and a nice patina; another indicator that this gun has never been refinished. The stock is very sound with no cracks or chips anywhere The brass nose cap is a bit loose from the forestock, but remains solid enough for handling and display. The captured ram rod is intact and in working order.
This pistol would make a great candidate for any Middle Easter/Ottoman display or Crimean War collection.
