Rock Island Auction Company is pleased to present the factory prototype Colt Model 1878 Flattop Target Double Action Revolver, serial number 1. Once part of the famed Robert Sutherland collection, this prototype is pictured and identified in Wilson’s “The Book of Colt Firearms” on pages 316 and 334. Designed by William Mason and Charles Brinckerhoff, Colt's factory manager and Superintendent of Engineering, the Model 1878 revolver was intended to be a double action alternative to Colt's legendary Single Action Army revolver. With 51,210 being produced, the 1878 was never nearly as popular as its single action cousin; however, there were still many that favored it in the West for its firepower, including Captain Jack Crawford, who replaced Buffalo Bill Cody as "Chief of Scouts" shortly after the Battle of Little Bighorn. Flattop target variations of the Model 1878 are extreme rarities in Colt collecting. As pointed out by celebrated Colt historian and author R.L. Wilson, “An extremely limited number of revolvers had adjustable (windage) rear sights, topstraps without grooves—and flat, and German silver blade front sights inserted in an iron base and secured by a screw; iron blades also known” (“The Book of Colt Firearms,” page 331). By 1888 target shooting had gained a very popular following in Great Britain, and Colt was eager to cash in on the sport. The Model 1878 had already established itself as a capable target revolver. Renowned marksman Walter Winans had used a standard fixed sight example in early 1885 to win his first match at Wimbledon. Some of the first Model 1878 target revolvers were ordered by Colt's London Agent Frederick von Oppen and arrived in England in 1889. Today, these target models are nearly impossible to find, let alone a prototype. This prototype revolver is left in the white and is fitted with an adjustable German silver blade front sight secured to an iron base by a single screw and windage adjustable notch rear sight mounted of the flat top strap. The barrel has the one-line Hartford address on top and the caliber designation “45 COLT” on the left side. The serial number 1 appears on the butt, loading gate, and rear cylinder face. The revolver wears a set of checkered walnut grips and features a lanyard ring mounted on the butt. Provenance: The Robert Q. Sutherland Collection; The Charles Marx Collection

Very fine as a tool-room prototype retaining mostly a re-polished bright appearance with a series of scratches on the trigger guard, and scattered handling marks. The right side of the frame exhibits a horizontal crack (possibly casting flaw) ahead of the hammer screw which terminates at base of loading gate. The grips are also very fine with overall crisp checkering and much of the original varnish remaining. Mechanically functions intermittently, needs work.