Geno . . . je parle assez bien francais, merci beaucoup. I have no trouble understanding what the term MEANS. The question is whether "pyroxylee" has any OFFICIAL status. My point is that you do NOT find "poudre pyroxylee" as an official proofmark from either of the French proofhouses, whereas you DO find "nitro" as an official proofmark on guns from various countries (England, Germany, etc). The terms "poudre vive" and "poudre pyroxylee" are perfectly interchangeable, and in fact the former has "official" status (as in the Belgian "PV" proofmark). What Manufrance chose to put on its guns, in addition to official proofmarks, is immaterial. Once more . . . the OFFICIAL French proofhouse designation for smokeless powder proof is PT under either a star (Paris) or crown (St Etienne). Maybe Manufrance figured they needed to spell it out for people who didn't understand what the proofmark meant.
