Crazy,solid Bronze 1917

[Rick B]

Seen this today while Antique hunting. It weight every bit of 75 pounds or more. They cast it with a rifle missing the rear guard for some odd reason. Rick B

[kcw]

For what possible purpose? Maybe to hang it outside, over the door of a gun shop? Couldn't do that these days. Some fly-by-night scrapper would steal it in a heartbeat!

[joem]

Pretty neat but at $695.00 it's more than I want it.

[M1Garandy]

To me it looks like something that would have been part of a WWI statue of some type.

[Stephan]

Things that make ya' go 'Hmmmm'

[John Sukey]

Possibly a bayonet trainer (fencing musket)

[Rick B]

John,
it weighs close to 100 pounds. No trainer here Rick B

[da gimp]

To me it looks like something that would have been part of a WWI statue of some type.

sounds very likely to me sir......................good thinking.

[nickg]

bet there is a ww1 memorial missing their 1917 somewhere

[ebeeby]

bet there is a ww1 memorial missing their 1917 somewhere

Yeah - that's the one of York where they took the '17 down and put in an '03 !

[Dan Shapiro]

That idea of being missing from a war monument is not far-fetched:

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/W..._Gallipolis_OH

The notation says that the missing rifle was replaced by a rifle resembling a Springfield '03 - like similar monuments in the area. It would appear that people still believe the Doughboys were only armed with Springfields.

[ikesdad]

Is that statue holding a #4 mk1 ?

[Fred Pillot]

Art students make stuff like that. Just another thought.

[da gimp]

an experienced officer here was in doubt that it came off a statue..... as we could not find any marks where the hands of a doughboy would be holding it on that cast rifle..............after talking. we both doubted that they'ld make the rifle so easily detached from a statue....

[Dick Hosmer]

My guess would be a punishment rifle - "Here, Mr. Dumbjohn, take a few laps with this at port arms, smartly now!"