The 1900 "Christmas Gun"

StarOfTheWest · 01-09-2008, 04:14 PM

This is my very favorite of all the Lugers so far.

It is an early 1900, narrow grip safety, all matched.

Inscription is "Meinem lieben Carl Ludwig Lauenstein, Weihnachten 1903"

Translated this reads: "To my dear Carl Ludewig Lauenstein, Christmas 1903"

Research on this gentleman shows him to have been a lawyer and statesman, judging by his writings available online.
We were able to find his doctoral thesis online, because of the somewhat unusual spelling of his name.

http://www.worldcatlibraries.org/wcpa/top3mset/49348941

A quote from his thesis:
"If a person has disposed of a thing, and the disposition is subject to a condition precedent, any further disposition which he makes as regards the thing in the period of suspense is ineffective on the satisfaction of the condition to the extent that it would defeat or adversely affect the effect subject to the condition. Such a disposition is equivalent to a disposition which is effected during the period of suspense by execution or attachment or by the administrator in insolvency proceedings."

Very typical German legalese stuff.

When the gun was engraved, it was reblued, apparently in a hot salt blue tank, as the temps could not be gotten hot enough to turn it actually *blue*, without burning the salts, due to the hardness of the steel.
So it is a lovely old plum color.
Very non-DWM, yet vintage in it's own way.

All #s match, and I sat every night during Christmas season this year with this dear gun in my lap, as I waited to fall asleep.

I love this gun.
It touches my heart.

In 1903, there were no wars in Germany.
All was peaceful and good.
Life was sweet.
This gun smells like a Weihnachten tree and Christmas cookies.

John Sabato · 01-09-2008, 04:51 PM

I bet a lot of guys would be envious to have a wife who would give them a Luger for Christmas! A very nice gun... thanks for sharing... and look forward to seeing the rest of your really neat collection.

StarOfTheWest · 01-09-2008, 05:17 PM

According to my German cousin, this would most likely have been a Christmas gift from the gentleman's uncle, father, or grandfather.
But definitely a gift from a male relative.

Women would not have bought a gun for a man in 1903 in Germany.

Heinz · 01-09-2008, 06:54 PM

Anna, I do not think the color shift is from a dip tank. It is a rust reblue that was probably done by the jeweler who did the engraving and the salt solution had some copper, or other heavy metal salt, in it to accelerate the rust bluing process.

THe second blue has changed color over the years, but is a charming part of the history.

Edward Tinker · 01-09-2008, 07:12 PM

there is something about the way it is worded. But "Meinem lieben" sounds more like "my love" rather than "my dear".

A wife to a German Officer?

Whatever it is, very nice, I have a german pre-WW2 dagger i picked up a couple of years ago that was a Christmas gift to a graduating polizie officer

Dwight Gruber · 01-09-2008, 07:59 PM

Anna,

Another delightful presentation. Could you say if the thumb safety is type 1 or type 2?

--Dwight

StarOfTheWest · 01-09-2008, 08:00 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Edward Tinker
there is something about the way it is worded. But "Meinem lieben" sounds more like "my love" rather than "my dear".

A wife to a German Officer?

Whatever it is, very nice, I have a german pre-WW2 dagger i picked up a couple of years ago that was a Christmas gift to a graduating polizie officer

A German wife, out of the kitchen, what kind of crazy talk is that?

Seriously though, "Meinem lieben..." means "my dear"

"My beloved" is "meinem geliebten".

There's also beliebt, which is everyone's favorite, could be a car, could be a spa, could be a tune.

thegundude · 01-09-2008, 08:02 PM

Wow, very cool!

StarOfTheWest · 01-09-2008, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Dwight Gruber
Anna,

Another delightful presentation. Could you say if the thumb safety is type 1 or type 2?

--Dwight

Type 1.

StarOfTheWest · 01-09-2008, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Heinz
Anna, I do not think the color shift is from a dip tank. It is a rust reblue that was probably done by the jeweler who did the engraving and the salt solution had some copper, or other heavy metal salt, in it to accelerate the rust bluing process.

THe second blue has changed color over the years, but is a charming part of the history.

Thanks Heinz.
I guess I assumed hot blue salts because of the way some P-38s went plum due to temps.
I appreciate your info.

Ron Wood · 01-10-2008, 08:45 PM

I think Heinz may be on the right track. Although I do not think there were any salts involved, it looks like it might have been a type of acid rust blue solution that was contaminated with a copper compound (possibly copper sulfate that is a component of some "cold blue" solutions). It obviously was a wipe on application rather than dip since the color appears on part of the barrel and receiver, and the portion of the left side rail that is covered by the side plate is still blue. It is interesting that the frame latch for the toggle lock is also still blue and didn't "take" the red solution.

It is a sweetheart of a gun and I understand your affection for it. The fact that it has a Type I thumb safety with this late of a serial number is just another occurrence of DWM using up existing parts. I have a 1900 Commercial with a serial number over 500 lower and it has a Type II safety.

StarOfTheWest · 01-10-2008, 08:59 PM

Thanks for looking everyone, and I do think you all are exactly right about the plum bluing.
It really *does* look wiped on.
I appreciate your knowledge, folks.

Quote:

Originally posted by John Sabato
I bet a lot of guys would be envious to have a wife who would give them a Luger for Christmas!

Well, I *did* give my Honey a couple of Lugers this year, but we have been married for 37 years, and I know where he keeps them.

He got a 1906 original 9mm AE, and a nice Mauser S/42 this year.
But he earns them....he has to put up with me yammering on excitedly about little tiny proof marks, and obscure Luger history all the time, hehehe!
And I always smell like Hoppes #9.

Ron Wood · 01-10-2008, 09:09 PM

Hoppes #9 beats Chanel #5 any day

mauro · 01-12-2008, 03:04 AM

Wow,
Beautiful gun!
Thank you
Mauro

A.Mifsin · 02-03-2008, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by StarOfTheWest
Type 1.

Thank you Anna for sharing, you always make my day when I see one of your Lugers. Maybe you could explain what is the difference between type 1 and type 2 thumb safety please.

Thank you
Alf.

Pete Ebbink · 02-03-2008, 01:54 PM

Types 1, 2 and 3...from V. Bobba's book :

A.Mifsin · 02-03-2008, 02:02 PM

Thanks Pete for your help

Alf

StarOfTheWest · 02-03-2008, 04:49 PM

Thanks for the comparison pics of the safety levers.
I really was just doing a WAG, since the 1900 gun has an early narrow grip safety, so I assumed it must be Type 1.
Thanks for proving my guess correct.
I learn so much here, y'all are wonderful!

Dwight Gruber · 02-04-2008, 12:23 AM

Anna,

There is no direct correlation between the narrow/wide grip safety and the thumb safety type. Grip safeties change from narrow to wide between sn 9855 and sn 10010. Thumb safeties vary between type-1 and type-2 (in some distinct ranges) until sn 10235 where they become all type-3. Types 2 and 3 are intermixed between sn 10010 and sn 10192.

--Dwight

Pete Ebbink · 02-04-2008, 11:14 AM

Dwight,

Just to clarify...the SN' you quote above pertain to the Commerical run of Lugers...not necessarily military/contract Lugers...???...

01-09-2008, 04:14 PM	#1
StarOfTheWest User Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: East Texas, CSA Posts: 208 Thanks: 81 Thanked 15 Times in 12 Posts	The 1900 "Christmas Gun" This is my very favorite of all the Lugers so far. It is an early 1900, narrow grip safety, all matched. Inscription is "Meinem lieben Carl Ludwig Lauenstein, Weihnachten 1903" Translated this reads: "To my dear Carl Ludewig Lauenstein, Christmas 1903" Research on this gentleman shows him to have been a lawyer and statesman, judging by his writings available online. We were able to find his doctoral thesis online, because of the somewhat unusual spelling of his name. http://www.worldcatlibraries.org/wcpa/top3mset/49348941 A quote from his thesis: "If a person has disposed of a thing, and the disposition is subject to a condition precedent, any further disposition which he makes as regards the thing in the period of suspense is ineffective on the satisfaction of the condition to the extent that it would defeat or adversely affect the effect subject to the condition. Such a disposition is equivalent to a disposition which is effected during the period of suspense by execution or attachment or by the administrator in insolvency proceedings." Very typical German legalese stuff. When the gun was engraved, it was reblued, apparently in a hot salt blue tank, as the temps could not be gotten hot enough to turn it actually blue, without burning the salts, due to the hardness of the steel. So it is a lovely old plum color. Very non-DWM, yet vintage in it's own way. All #s match, and I sat every night during Christmas season this year with this dear gun in my lap, as I waited to fall asleep. I love this gun. It touches my heart. In 1903, there were no wars in Germany. All was peaceful and good. Life was sweet. This gun smells like a Weihnachten tree and Christmas cookies. __________________ Sorry, I take that back. I have no problem with the horse you rode in on.

01-09-2008, 04:51 PM	#2
John Sabato Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The Capital of the Free World Posts: 10,150 Thanks: 3,003 Thanked 2,304 Times in 1,096 Posts	I bet a lot of guys would be envious to have a wife who would give them a Luger for Christmas! A very nice gun... thanks for sharing... and look forward to seeing the rest of your really neat collection. __________________ regards, -John S "...We hold these truths to be self-evident that ALL men are created EQUAL *and are endowed by their Creator* with certain UNALIENABLE* rights, and among these are life, LIBERTY, and the pursuit of happiness..."*

01-09-2008, 05:17 PM	#3
StarOfTheWest User Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: East Texas, CSA Posts: 208 Thanks: 81 Thanked 15 Times in 12 Posts	According to my German cousin, this would most likely have been a Christmas gift from the gentleman's uncle, father, or grandfather. But definitely a gift from a male relative. Women would not have bought a gun for a man in 1903 in Germany. __________________ Sorry, I take that back. I have no problem with the horse you rode in on.

01-09-2008, 08:02 PM	#8
thegundude User Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Western NC Posts: 1,137 Thanks: 3 Thanked 16 Times in 3 Posts	Wow, very cool! __________________ Keep your knees in the breeze and your iron in the air. ~Steve

01-10-2008, 08:45 PM	#11
Ron Wood Moderator 2010 LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Santa Teresa New Mexico just outside of the West Texas town of El Paso Posts: 6,988 Thanks: 1,067 Thanked 5,090 Times in 1,675 Posts	I think Heinz may be on the right track. Although I do not think there were any salts involved, it looks like it might have been a type of acid rust blue solution that was contaminated with a copper compound (possibly copper sulfate that is a component of some "cold blue" solutions). It obviously was a wipe on application rather than dip since the color appears on part of the barrel and receiver, and the portion of the left side rail that is covered by the side plate is still blue. It is interesting that the frame latch for the toggle lock is also still blue and didn't "take" the red solution. It is a sweetheart of a gun and I understand your affection for it. The fact that it has a Type I thumb safety with this late of a serial number is just another occurrence of DWM using up existing parts. I have a 1900 Commercial with a serial number over 500 lower and it has a Type II safety. __________________ If it's made after 1918...it's a reproduction

01-09-2008, 06:54 PM	#4
Heinz User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Greenville SC Posts: 1,004 Thanks: 377 Thanked 410 Times in 180 Posts	Anna, I do not think the color shift is from a dip tank. It is a rust reblue that was probably done by the jeweler who did the engraving and the salt solution had some copper, or other heavy metal salt, in it to accelerate the rust bluing process. THe second blue has changed color over the years, but is a charming part of the history.

01-09-2008, 07:12 PM	#5
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,911 Thanks: 1,987 Thanked 4,502 Times in 2,077 Posts	there is something about the way it is worded. But "Meinem lieben" sounds more like "my love" rather than "my dear". A wife to a German Officer? Whatever it is, very nice, I have a german pre-WW2 dagger i picked up a couple of years ago that was a Christmas gift to a graduating polizie officer Attached Thumbnails

01-09-2008, 07:59 PM	#6
Dwight Gruber User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 3,890 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1,282 Times in 424 Posts	Anna, Another delightful presentation. Could you say if the thumb safety is type 1 or type 2? --Dwight

01-10-2008, 09:09 PM	#13
Ron Wood Moderator 2010 LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Santa Teresa New Mexico just outside of the West Texas town of El Paso Posts: 6,988 Thanks: 1,067 Thanked 5,090 Times in 1,675 Posts	Hoppes #9 beats Chanel #5 any day __________________ If it's made after 1918...it's a reproduction

01-12-2008, 03:04 AM	#14
mauro FIREARM HISTORIAN AND AUT Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Belgium Posts: 1,535 Thanks: 106 Thanked 349 Times in 129 Posts	Wow, Beautiful gun! Thank you Mauro __________________ Mauro Baudino - www.lugerlp08.com www.paul-mauser-archive.com Mauser Company and Firearm Historian - Mauser Parabellum Certification Service.

02-03-2008, 01:54 PM	#16
Pete Ebbink User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The USA Posts: 5,919 Thanks: 0 Thanked 6 Times in 4 Posts	Types 1, 2 and 3...from V. Bobba's book :

02-03-2008, 02:02 PM	#17
A.Mifsin User Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Malta Posts: 570 Thanks: 74 Thanked 12 Times in 12 Posts	Thanks Pete for your help Alf __________________ I prefer a Luger

02-03-2008, 04:49 PM	#18
StarOfTheWest User Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: East Texas, CSA Posts: 208 Thanks: 81 Thanked 15 Times in 12 Posts	Thanks for the comparison pics of the safety levers. I really was just doing a WAG, since the 1900 gun has an early narrow grip safety, so I assumed it must be Type 1. Thanks for proving my guess correct. I learn so much here, y'all are wonderful! __________________ Sorry, I take that back. I have no problem with the horse you rode in on.

02-04-2008, 12:23 AM	#19
Dwight Gruber User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Portland, Oregon Posts: 3,890 Thanks: 0 Thanked 1,282 Times in 424 Posts	Anna, There is no direct correlation between the narrow/wide grip safety and the thumb safety type. Grip safeties change from narrow to wide between sn 9855 and sn 10010. Thumb safeties vary between type-1 and type-2 (in some distinct ranges) until sn 10235 where they become all type-3. Types 2 and 3 are intermixed between sn 10010 and sn 10192. --Dwight

02-04-2008, 11:14 AM	#20
Pete Ebbink User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The USA Posts: 5,919 Thanks: 0 Thanked 6 Times in 4 Posts	Dwight, Just to clarify...the SN' you quote above pertain to the Commerical run of Lugers...not necessarily military/contract Lugers...???...