The oldest industrial firm and the oldest gunmaker in the world, Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta, S.p.A., launches its 475th anniversary with the publication of this lavish history and celebration of a unique world of fine guns. Beretta remains under the stewardship of its founding family, headed now by Ugo Gussalli Beretta and his sons, Pietro and Franco. Today the Beretta line of firearms and accessories reigns as one of the few international brands symbolic of unsurpassed quality. But no other firm goes back so far in history, or reaches so many corners of the globe, as Beretta. The Italian company stands supreme partly because it is on the cutting edge--of design, quality, manufacture, performance, and style. Through the centuries, the family has guided the company in the transition from specialist gun-barrel makers to, in Napoleonic times, creator of sporting firearms, later adding military and law-enforcement arms and importing arms by Colt, Remington, S&amp;W, and Winchester, still later developing one of the first international industrial enterprises. The Beretta line is the firearms enthusiast's dream: self-loading pistols, rifles, and shotguns; bolt-action rifles; double-barrel over-and-under and side-by-side sporting rifles and shotguns; single-barrel trap guns; and from these, a refined line of premium-grade guns unsurpassed by any gunmaker in the world. All are created with the perfect melding of the most advanced, space-age, computer-generated production machinery, in concert with traditional hand craftsmanship, in the ancient gunmaking village of Gardone, Val Trompia. In 1985, Beretta's classic Model 92 pistol was adopted as the M9, the official U.S. Armed Forces sidearm, following extensive competition with the designs of other companies, sessions that subjected the pistol to the most rigorous tests. The Model 92 is the most widely used self-loading pistol in law enforcement and the military in the world today. Beretta shooters dominate national, international, and Olympic shotgun competitions, and are a commanding factor in the rapidly developing world of sporting clays. This richly illustrated, beautifully presented work joins R. L. Wilson's other firearms classics: Colt: An American Legend; Winchester: An American Legend; The Peacemakers; Steel Canvas; Ruger &amp; His Guns; and Buffalo Bill's Wild West--a collection of books that comprise an unsurpassed tribute to the art, craftsmanship, history, mechanics, performance, and romance unique to fine guns.

The World of Beretta: An International Legend

Business & Money

Wilson, R.L.

Biography & History

Random House]

Silk and Steel: Women at Arms is the first comprehensive presentation on the subject of women and firearms. No object has had a greater impact on world history over the past 650 years than the firearm, and a surprising number of women have been keen on the subject: as shooters, hunters, collectors, engravers, and even gunmakers. From Queen Elizabeth I through her descendant Queen Elizabeth II, the numbers of aristocratic female arms enthusiasts, particularly shooters, have been impressive. Among those regal personages: Russia’s Empresses Elizabeth and Catherine the Great, France’s Marie Antoinette, and Great Britain’s Duchess of Devonshire. In the New World, Thomas Jefferson’s matched pair of Queen Anne–style flintlock pistols were made by London gunmaker Mary Dealtry. Pioneer American women took bold steps to defend home and hearth, and their courage earned them the right to vote in Western states, where hardiness and self-reliance were taken for granted. As Jefferson himself admonished: “[The gun gives] boldness, enterprise, and independence to the mind.” Many women were comfortable with firearms in early America, and among the world’s most famous women in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries was Annie Oakley—“Little Sure Shot.” Turning back the clock to the time of Joan of Arc, R. L. Wilson shows how women have played a vital role in armed conflicts. For many centuries, women went to war—sometimes in the guise of men—without their comrades knowing that they were present. Increasingly, in our own era, there are female fighter pilots and cadets at West Point and at all the U.S. service academies. The 2001–2002 war in Afghanistan saw Northern Alliance women trained to fire AK-47s, some even shooting their Taliban tormentors. Expanding on a long tradition, in the post–World War II period, millions of women and girls gravitated to sport shooting, including trap, skeet, and sporting clays, rifle and pistol target competitions, and the harvesting of game birds and even the dangerous big game of Africa. As evidenced in the writings of Ernest Hemingway, Robert Ruark, and Isak Dinesen, big game hunting in Africa was a favorite pursuit of many society women from Europe and the United States. Following the publication of this book, the Rosenbruch Wildlife Heritage Museum will mount a traveling exhibition exploring the theme of women and firearms. Firearms, clothing, and accessories will be accompanied by paintings, photographs, drawings, and prints, as well as numerous other artifacts, to depict and document a captivating subject never before examined in such depth. Silk and Steel joins the author’s series on the history of firearms, which commenced in 1979 with The Colt Heritage and continued through such later titles as Colt: An American Legend, Winchester: An American Legend, The Peacemakers, Steel Canvas, Ruger &amp; His Guns, Buffalo Bill’s Wild West (with Greg Martin), and The World of Beretta. Silk and Steel includes more than three hundred color plates, with spectacular new collages by Peter Beard. The bibliography lists myriad works of reference, some centuries old, and is accompanied by a detailed index.

Silk and Steel: Women at Arms

History

Americas

No arms maker in history has captured the imagination in the way Winchester has: rifles, shotguns, and ammunition famous the world over for craftsmanship, design capability and performance, historical tradition, and sheer romance. And it is the Winchester that is known as "the gun that won the West." Now, in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the Winchester marque, R. L. Wilson -- Americas most distinguished writer and expert in the firearms field -- has produced the definitive and official history of Winchester arms and ammunition. Valuable production tables are presented, in addition to a spectacular tribute, in text and photographs, of the full spectrum of products, first introduced in 1849. Designed companion volume to the best-selling Colt: An American Legend, Winchester matches that award-winning work with a fresh and breathtaking look at Americas most renowned and respected maker of long guns and cartridges. Every collector and enthusiast will delight in its broad appeal, with over 300 photographs in full color and more than 165 in black and white. Winchester: An American Legend pictures and describes virtually every model ever made from the prototype rifles by Hunt and Jennings, to the Volcanics and Henrys, through the full range of lever-action post-Civil War rifles, into the myriad of single-shot, pump, semiautomatic, and bolt actions. Major models, such as the famed 1873 rifle, the Model 12 and 21 shotguns, and the Model 70 bolt-action sporting rifle, are all given lavish attention in text and pictures. Moreover, for the first time in any major firearms book, pictorial and textual material on Winchester's wide range of ammunition) is presented. The hundreds of Winchester firearms pictured range from standard models for service or sport use, as well as for target-shooting and plinking, to the most elaborate of presentations -exquisite gold-inlaid and engraved arms (some by Tiffany &amp; Co.) with historical pedigrees of the elite and famous. Here are guns of President Abraham Lincoln, stagecoach king Ben Holladay, markswoman Annie Oakley, John Wayne, and the keenest of all Winchester enthusiasts, ranchman and U.S. president Theodore Roosevelt Winchester's contributions to the two world wars, Korea, and Vietnam are also detailed, including the development of the M1 carbine's basic design configuration in the amazing time of thirteen days. The contributions of gun designers B. Tyler Henry, John Browning, T. C. Johnson, and Marshall Carbine Williams are recognized as are the artistic achievements of such gifted engravers as Gustave Young, L. D. Nimschke, the Ulrich family, and the dean of contemporary artisans, Alvin A. White. Several beautiful guns from the Winchester Custom Shop are featured in full color. The books large format presents many of the firearms in exquisite close-ups, accompanied by substantial details of history, development, and significance. Variations within model groups are given ample attention, and the books organization gives an unequaled overview of nearly a century and a half of Winchester achievement A unique, comprehensive table in the appendix gives serial numbers and related production data previously unavailable in any one source. The most lavish work ever produced on American long arms, Winchester: An American Legend has been published with the full cooperation of the Winchester Division of the Olin Corporation, as well as Winchester licensee, the U.S. Repeating Arms Company.

Winchester: An American Legend: The Official History of Winchester Firearms and Ammunition from 1849 to the Present

Crafts, Hobbies & Home

Antiques & Collectibles

THE DEFINITIVE PRICE GUIDE TO FIREARMS FROM THE LEADING AUTHORITY IN THE FIELD After interning with such reputable institutions as the Royal Armouries, H.M. Tower of London, and the Corcoran Gallery of Arts, R. L. Wilson was appointed the curator of firearms at the prestigious Wadsworth Athenaeum at the age of twenty-three. Since then, Wilson has become the foremost figure in the area of collectible firearms. Now, for the first time, his lifetime of experience, insight, and knowledge about collecting, buying, and selling firearms has been loaded into an invaluable sourcebook. The Official R. L. Wilson Price Guide to Firearms covers more than 30,000 prices from Colt revolvers and Winchester double-barrel shotguns to German World War II Lugers and British sporting rifles. This singular reference also features a unique history of arms collecting from the Renaissance to modern times, a selected bibliography of important firearms reference works, a complete listing of collector clubs, organizations, and museums with firearms displays, and a lavish full-color insert highlighting the year at auction.

R. L. Wilson The Official Price Guide to Gun Collecting, 1st edition

House of Collectibles

THE ULTIMATE RESOURCE TO GUN COLLECTING--WITH MORE THAN 32,000 PRICES LISTED!After interning with such venerable institutions as the Royal Armouries, H.M. Tower of London, and the Corcoran Gallery of Art, R. L. Wilson was appointed the curator of firearms at the prestigious Wadsworth Atheneum at the age of twenty-three. Since then, Wilson has become the foremost figure in the area of collectible firearms. Now, he shares his lifetime of experience, insight, and knowledge about collecting, buying, and selling firearms with you. The Official R. L. Wilson Price Guide to Gun Collecting covers more than 32,000 prices from Colt revolvers and Winchester rifles and shotguns to German Lugers and British sporting rifles and game guns--and much more. This essential reference also features a unique history of arms collecting from the Renaissance to modern times, a comprehensive bibliography of important firearms reference works, a complete international listing of collector clubs and organizations, a comprehensive review of the '98-'99 season, and a lavish full-color insert highlighting the year in the collector's world.

The Official R. L. Wilson Price Guide to Gun Collecting Second Edition

A fully revised and updated handbook features more than 32,000 prices for different types of firearms, in categories arranged alphabetically by manufacturer, accompanied by a brief history of arms collecting and hundredsd of detailed photographs. Original. 10,000 first printing.

The R.L. Wilson Official Price Guide to Gun Collecting, 3rd edition (OFFICIAL PRICE GUIDE TO RL WILSON GUN COLLECTING)

A unique pictorial celebration of the West, lavishly illustrated and unsurpassed in its authenticity: a collector's item for anyone interested in America's Colorful past. From the Lewis and Clark Expedition to today's Western films and videos, here are the arms and adventures who made the Colt, the Winchester, and many oilier marques into American legends. Over 300 color plates, and over 200 black-and-white photos.

The Peacemakers: Arms and Adventure in the American West

Wilson offers the first book on the extraordinary spectacle of America's finest firearms from the mid-1700s until today. Here in full color are exquisite engravings, gold, silver and platinum inlays, intricately carved mother-of-pearl and ivory--craftsmanship which rivals any other field of decorative arts.

Steel Canvas: The Art of American Arms

Military

Lavishly illustrated with nearly 300 photographs, this is a complete, authoritative history of the world-famous Ruger firearms by the author of The Colt Heritage, Steel Canvas and Winchester: The Golden Age. This beautifully presented work joins R.L. Wilson's other firearms classics as a tribute to the art and craftsmanship, history, and romance of fine guns. 185 full color and 100 b&amp;w photos.

RUGER AND HIS GUNS: A History of the Man, the Company and Their Firearms

Simon&Schuster

In this unique tribute to the West, R. L. Wilson has produced the definitive and most lavishly illustrated book ever on the weaponry of the West and its colorful and intriguing users. In 320 full color and 215 black and white illustrations, with in depth text and captions, the broad range of arms and users is detailed. Beginning with Native American primitive weaponry, this book presents a comprehensive panorama from Lewis and Clark and their historic expedition, through subsequent trailblazing explorers, traders and mountain men, to the Army, the gold and silver miners, gunfighters, gamblers, outlaws, frontier madams and their soiled doves, to peace officers, cowboys and ranchers, as well as sodbusters, shopkeepers and the agents of Wells Fargo, hunters and gentlemen sportsmen, Wild West showmen and women, to the Western stars of stage, screen, radio, and television. A final chapter provides insights and revelations on collecting arms and related treasures of the frontier. No book of the West has been so thoroughly researched to produce an unmatched mother lode of exquisitely designed color illustrations. Drawing upon talents of gifted photographers, and upon archives of period images, the author has assembled the most dramatic and captivating visual collection of historic and priceless Western arms and their users ever published. The original color photography and the historic period photographic images and art, and film and TV stills create a new and comprehensive look at the West. These extraordinary, often beautiful illustrations also include hundreds of objects of memorabilia that have their own role in the saga: Indian artifacts, holsters and cartridge belts, chaps, saddles, boots, and countless other leather goods, military uniforms, gambling equipment, law enforcement badges, headgear, clothing, advertising art and trade cards, show business memorabilia, and much more. Even frontier architecture is frequently illustrated. Over 250 private collectors, museums, and historical societies cooperated in the author's far reaching research. Foremost among these sources is the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum, which exhibits an unmatched collection of arms and accoutrements. Over sixty illustrations were taken of specific arms and memorabilia displayed by that remarkable institution. The book's large format presents most of these arms in exquisite close ups accompanied by details of their history and significance. The book's organization provides a unique overview of the original West and the fictional West, the latter serving to keep alive the spirit of romance and adventure. A selected bibliography and detailed index complete the contents of this landmark tribute to an American phenomenon: The West.

Peacemakers: Arms and Adventure in the American West

Chartwell Books

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