Pair of flintlock pistols, Jean Louroux, c. 1665
The quality of the carving on Jean Louroux’s pistols is always extremely high. An unusual feature of this pair is that each pistols has been made from a single piece of solid ivory: as a rule the fore-end of the stock (the section in which the barrel lies) and the pommel were carved separately and then joined. The ivory on the underside of the fore-end has been carved to resemble smoke curling from the powder.