Damascus
Thanks a lot for the photos. They inspired a lot of thoughts. My research so far indicates the Purdey barrel marks normally appear on the barrel flats in front of the hook like your pictures show. A "JP" indicates the barrels were finished by Purdey. Other letters denote other people finished the barrels. Other barrels not finished by Purdey were rare in 1869 when my gun was built. As I am finding out nothing is that straight forward on old Purdey guns. My gun has no marks-see photos below. I contacted Donald Dallas about this and he said no marks were not usual. The barrel marks denote who finished the barrels-not who made the damascus forgings. Purdey got their damascus forgings from the best suppliers available-usually from England and most likely Belgium. I sent a few pictures of my gun with its original case with the Purdey label marked 8142-the gun serial number. As far as I know all the major parts are original. I'll know more about what modifications have been made over time when I receive the original build specs from Purdey. As someone responded to my post the real fun is learning what you can about these old masterpieces! The search continues! Thanks to everyone who responded to this past! In the case a powder measure, an adjustable shot measure, original cleaning rod and a bore bush with rope were included. Sorry no pictures. I'll try to figure out how to attach pictures.
Bob
