Established in 1879, the Moran Bros. firm was one of the first saddlery and gun leather firms founded in Miles City, Montana Territory. The brothers operated a two-man shop until 1895, when they sold the business to Charles E. Coggshall, whose business eventually became the famous Miles City Saddlery. Moran Bros. is one of the few Western saddlery and gun leather firms where all of their legitimate examples can be truly dated to the 19th century Western Frontier. Due to their limited production capacity and short time of operation, surviving examples are incredibly scarce, making them highly desirable on the collectors market. This specific example is pictured and described on p. 116 of "Packing Iron: Gunleather of the Frontier West" by Richard Rattenbury. This example is marked on both the body of the holster and the billet of the cartridge belt with the iconic oval "MORAN BRO'S/MILES CITY.M.T." maker's mark. The holster itself is of the single "Mexican loop" variety with a large skirt. The body of the holster and loop have attractive border tooling incorporating rope and scalloped patterns. The holster will accommodate a 7 1/2 inch barrel Colt Single Action Army revolver and is in cross-draw configuration for a right handed shooter. The wide belt has a single row of approximately .44-.45 caliber sized cartridge loops, a nickeled buckle with clipped corners, and a "money" opening in the belt near the buckle. The belt is 3 3/4 inches wide and measures approximately 44 inches long including the billet. Provenance: The Jim Holley Collection; The Greg Lampe Collection

Exceptionally fine, showing light wear overall considering its age and likely use in the Frontier West. There are some scattered minor scuffs, mostly on edges, and some scattered minor age-related cracking, with the maker's marks remaining crisp. Don't miss this opportunity to add an incredible example of a scarce Moran Bros. holster rig to your collection!