This is a London-made Enfield Pattern 1853 3 band musket imported by either the North or run through the blockade to the South during the Civil War.  Over 900,000 Enfields were brought over from England during the Civil War and saw extensive use with both sides.  The lockplate is marked "Keen London" with typical London proofmarkings on the left side of the barrel.  There were two principal areas of manufacture of the Enfield during the Civil War...one was Birmingham which has its own set of proofs and usually has a lockplate marked "TOWER"...the other was London whose arms bear the individual maker's name on the lockplate and London proofs.  There were a number of makers in London and over the years, and while we've had many  London-made Enfields marked LA Co, Bond, Barnett, Greener, Parker Field & Son, Potts & Hunt, etc, this is the first London Enfield marked "Keen" that we've run across.  Typical of London-guns, the bore size is located underneath the barrel and is "25" which translates to .577 caliber.  Barrel is also marked "Keen" underneath.    There is a faded  small oval cartouche located on the left side of the stock opposite the lockplate as well as two small initials without a border. 

Overall, this is a pretty good looking Civil War vintage Enfield with nice wood with a brown patina on the metal with good visible markings. No chips or cracks to the wood. Standard brass furniture including buttplate, triggerguard, and nose cap that has aged to a patina.   Bore doesn't look like its been cleaned since the end of the Civil War....its filthy and there is plenty of rust. Rear sight is missing which is fairly common on Enfields as they were only silver-soldered in place so they many got knocked off during their period of use.  Today, every other Enfield we find seems to be missing.  However, these can be easily remounted. Original ramrod and sling swivels intact. Lock works nicely at both full and half cock positions.  Nice markings throughout.  Barrel has had the muzzle trimmed back a bit...looks like about 1/2 inch.  Still, the front sight is intact and sits back far enough to appear correct making it rather difficult to notice.  Very Good wood overall....showing mostly light handling marks and is very solid with no alterations. True to its Civil War usage, there is some mild burnout to the wood around the bolster.  Very good screws.  A good representative of a Civil War Enfield 3 band P53 Rifle manufactured by a seldom seen London Maker.

Item# 0569

SOLD