Laborde L'aîné
French Flintlock officer's pistol by Laborde l'aîné de Saintes CA. 1775.
.60 caliber with 8 1/2" oct./ round barrel. Type carried by French officers in America during the Revolution.
Both Stockel and Jarlier list a Laborde in Paris 1745-1760.
He sometimes called himself "Laborde Le Jeune" which suggests his father might have called himself "Laborde L'Ainé", but the pistol you show looks to be about 1760.
Jarlier notes a Laborde in Bordeaux c.1730, but I think that is too early for this pistol. However, as Saintes is in the Charente Maritime just north of Bordeaux, it could be a member of the same family!
Peter
