Stunning Civil War Era Civilian Colt Model 1851 Navy Percussion Revolver with Special Order Antique Checkered Ivory Grip

This highly attractive Colt Model 1851 Navy revolver, manufactured in 1863, features the distinctive “I” suffix stamped above and below the main serial numbers on the barrel and frame, denoting a special order grip—here, a finely executed one-piece factory checkered grip. Such features suggest the revolver may have been specially ordered by, or for, a Union Army officer, as the Model 1851 Navy was the standard sidearm of the Civil War period.

The Colt “Revolving Belt Pistol of Naval Caliber” was designed between 1847 and 1850, originally marketed as the “Ranger Model,” and enjoyed a production run of approximately 215,348 units between 1850 and 1873. This example is equipped with a brass cone front sight, the barrel top marked “-ADDRESS COL. SAML COLT NEW-YORK U.S. AMERICA-,” “COLTS/PATENT” stamped on the left side of the frame, a “2” marked on the left side of the trigger guard bow, and the standard Naval Battle of Campeche scene on the cylinder.

All visible serial numbers match and are found on the loading lever, barrel, wedge, cylinder pin, cylinder, frame, trigger guard, and butt, confirming its originality and integrity.