SAWED OFF SHOTGUN

This handcrafted side by side shotgun has been respectfully shortened into a sawed off form, marrying bespoke gunsmith artistry with battlefield practicality. The shortened barrels now showing a heat distributed reflection from heat exposure and long service, years of firing and the characteristic discoloration worn by repeated use.

While the hand engraved floral steel and gold work and finely finished walnut stock speak to bespoke, industrial craftsmanship. Shortening the barrels increases shot spread and boosts terminal effect at very close range while sacrificing long range accuracy, a trade off that historically made sawed off variants prized for close quarters roles like urban warfare, trench or boarding actions, and mounted or irregular warfare where concealed environments, rapid two shot response, and stopping power mattered most.

Though rooted in 19th century frontier and military practice, where hunters and combatants adapted their own guns for immediate threats, this piece also echoes later close combat adaptations, from trench shotguns to improvised short barreled firearms, and it remains a vivid example of how personal modification and masterful ornamentation converged before mass production of standard form and finish.