Scottish Arms Makers: A Biographical Dictionary of Makers of Firearms, Edged Weapons and Armour Working in Scotland from the 15th Century to 1870 by Charles E. Whitelaw soon to be presented for sale on the fabulous BookLovers of Bath web site!
Published: London: Arms & Armour Press, 1977, Hardback in dust wrapper.
Illustrated by way of: Black & White Photographs; Diagrams;
From the cover: Scottish Arms Makers is an important and basic addition to weapons reference literature. It brings together the largest number of names of makers of arms and armour working in Scotland yet collected, and the details of training and work quoted add substantially to our knowledge of the history of arms and armour in Scotland.
The author, C. E. Whitelaw, spent thirty years searching the surviving Burgh and Guild records, both published and unpublished, as well as the local directories, histories, memoirs and account books, extracting the names of individual craftsmen together with details of their training and experience. He listed not only the gunmakers, armourers and swordsmiths, but also the founders and hiltmakers, the lorimers, bowyers and bucklers and such specialists as the gun-stockers and the makers of Steill bonnets, brigandines, halberds and worms for guns. The major cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow furnish the largest number of craftsmen and crafts, but Aberdeen, Dundee, Inverness, Perth and Stirling all add substantially to the total, and at least the names and occupations of a surprising number of craftsmen from small towns and villages have survived in the records.
Appendices reproduce extracts from the inventories made in connection with craftsmens wills, where these list stock in trade or tools, and pioneering studies of Scottish arms published by C. E. Whitelaw and now long out of print.
Introduction by: William Reid
Good+ in Good+ Dust Wrapper. A little rubbing to the edges of the dust wrapper, more heavily at the spine ends and corners which are now tape reinforced on the reverse. Edges of the text block lightly spotted. Text complete, clean and tight.
Blue boards with Gilt titling to the Spine. 379 pages. Index. 10″ x 7½”.
Of course, if you don’t like this one, may I draw your attention to more books hither or maybe further, hand picked, books in my Antiques & Collecting catalogue?
BookLovers of Bath 