WESTLEY RICHARDS

This faded paper label by Westley Richards is from the case lid of a gun sold from their London shop. Westley Richards (a Birmingham maker) had maintained a presence in London since the early years. Famously, William Bishop was their agent in New Bond Street and gained an enviable reputation. His portrait now hangs (oddly) in the current showroom of Holland & Holland in London. However, this label does not date from the years during which the ‘Bishop of Bond Street’ operated. Rather, it is from the period 1917–58, when they traded from Conduit Street. The label asserts the status of the company as patentees, as indeed they were, (holding patents to a number of the most important developments in gunmaking of the 19th century). It also highlights the Royal Warrant to King George V. DH