Illinois firearms auction offers Soviet MiG-21 fighter jet

ROCK ISLAND, Ill. — Rock Island Auction Company (RIAC) has been hinting since late last year that 2019 promised to be a special year. A glance at the special items in the firm’s May 2019 Premiere Firearms Auction confirms it. The collectible and antique, the high condition and historic will all be available en masse in the firearms specialist’s May 3-5 sale.

Leading the pack will be continued offerings from the collections of Robert M. Lee, Larry Jones, Allan Cors, and Robert E. Petersen, but also featured are noteworthy collections from Dr. Richard Kobetz, Robert Ferro, Dick Salzer, G. Thomas Puett, The NRA Whittington Center, the Putnam Green/Sycamore Collection, and an anonymous collection presented as The Southwest Collection.

One of the sources of massive interest in RIAC’s record-breaking 2018 was the fleet of military vehicles. Tanks, jeeps, motorcycles, troop transports, and more were large attractions in every sense of the word. This year RIAC announces a second offering of these impressive military vehicles. Taking point in the auction will be an M48 Patton battle tank, a Swiss Pz61 battle tank, and a Soviet MiG-21 Fishbed fighter jet. These are sure to steal the show, and rightly so since such vehicles are seldom offered publicly. However, savvy collectors will not lose focus of the bevy of remarkable firearms that comprise the overwhelming majority of the auction.

There are over 400 firearms from this beloved American gunmaker in RIAC’s May Auction. Leading the way is a factory engraved Winchester deluxe Model 1886, crowned with bright platinum bands. Numerous special order lever actions in superb condition populate the sale, but other eras are represented as well. Collectors are sure to marvel at the exhibition grade Deluxe Model 1907 semi-automatic rifle, signed and engraved by Master Engraver Angelo Stokes.

Also of note will be several U.S. military pieces such as an all original, near new, U.S. Army contract Winchester Model 12 trench shotgun with its Winchester M1917 bayonet and scabbard.

More than 650 Colt firearms are offered in the sale, representing all areas of Colt collecting. Serving as flagship for the entire auction, is an elegant revolver that threatens to break the world record price for a single firearm ever sold at auction. Known as “The Millikin Dragoon,” this cased, Gustave Young engraved Third Model Dragoon has achieved celebrity status in the gun collecting community. It is a revolver with an unprecedented combination of historical pedigree and condition that exists only at the pinnacle of collecting. It is the finest presentation grade Colt Dragoon RIAC has ever cataloged.

Also available in this offering is the finest known, factory cased Colt Pocket Model Paterson No. 1, as well as a factory engraved, nickel plated and acid etched black powder Frontier Six Shooter, each also destined for top collections.

With all the attention that the military vehicles attract, smart collectors want their items in the same sale. This has resulted in a myriad of phenomenal pieces.

Early American military arms have an excellent selection featuring: a U.S. Model 1799 North & Cheney, the finest known Dance & Brothers Confederate revolver, a McCormick “Model 1797/Horseman” type flintlock, a very rare North Army Contract Model 1811 flintlock, as well as several high art presentation swords from the era’s finest artisans.

Modern selections include the aforementioned military vehicles as well as remarkable rarities such as a Sedgley glove gun, a U.S. Air Force Colt Aircrewman revolver, a Singer M1911A1, and several experimental bayonets.

For more updates on this sale, visit www.riac.com and subscribe for email updates.

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