Henry has enjoyed many shooting trips in England over the years. In preparation for one particular shoot, he transported his shotguns from New York to London, which required  quite a lot of paperwork. In order to do this, he had to get a certificate of origin. That required producing an invoice, a bill of sale for the guns; then, getting customs to acknowledge that the guns were purchased in the United States. This certificate meant he would  not to have to pay U.S. Customs duty on the shotguns on the return journey. Next, it was also necessary to get a firearm’s certificate at the airport before boarding the plane. To keep the transport of these guns safe, the guns had to be checked before boarding. Holland and Holland in London, where Henry eventually stored his guns, facilitated the paperwork in advance of our travels, allowing Henry to import the guns into the United Kingdom for the purposes of game shooting. Over the years when he kept his guns at Holland and Holland, he was required to obtain separate licenses each time he removed the guns from storage, which was every time he went on a shoot in England. Henry eventually decided to transfer the storage of his guns from Holland and Holland to Williams Evan’s, another gunsmith. He handled this in person at William Evan’s and authorized the transfer by telephone with a call to Holland and Holland. It was only during our worldwide travels that Henry decided he would sell his matched pair of Arrieta’s since he no longer expected to shoot again using a loader. When we finally visited London he decided to stop by William Evans and investigate the possibility of selling the guns he hadn’t used in years. The gunsmith’s representative and Henry completed their deal, agreeing on a sales price and percentage of commission.  The happy ending to this story: while traveling elsewhere in Europe, Henry received the news that his lovely matched pair of guns had indeed been sold.

PHOTOS: Left Column: 1. The gun room at William Evans. The various shotguns are attractively displayed in glass fronted gun cabinets. 2. Henry’s leather gun case, brought out of storage for his inspection. 3. Henry and the salesman in the gunroom at William Evans, discussing the terms of the sale of his shotguns. 4. Old coal fireplace in the gunroom at William Evan’s. Center, Top: Storefront, William Evan’s London. Center, Middle: The Gun Room at William Evans.  Center, Bottom: Still life of merchandise displayed in William Evan’s.  Right Column: 1. William Evans’s on St. James Street, London. 2. Detail:  the engraving on Henry’s matched pair of Arrieta’s, handmade for him in Spain. 3. Gun rack and records books at William Evans.

JOURDAN ARPELLE-ZIEGLER                                        BACK TO MAP  PAGE