RICHARD RICE ESTATE MILITARIA
Tuesday, 30 April - Monday, 13 May 2024

The Arms and Armour being auctioned here are part of an eclectic Collection amassed over many years by Richard Rice, a Gisborne sheep farmer. Richard first became fascinated with 19thC black powder arms as a young man in the early 1960’s. Over the subsequent years he participated in numerous black powder shooting events and is a long-time member of the New Zealand Antique & Historical Arms Association. During this time his collection slowly expanded, at first purchasing items that captured his interest from around New Zealand at various auctions and antique arms shows. Later as he was able to travel further afield, he purchased artifacts from Europe and North America and developed a greater interest in antique arms and armor from Asia and India. He travelled extensively around China and south east Asia and along the way acquired many of the items on sale here. Richard has a keen interest in the history of the countries and periods from which he collected items from and that helped determine what he would acquire, as he liked to know the story of each item in his collection. These trips enabled visits to like-minded collectors where pleasurable time was spent debating the historical attributes of various artifacts. NOTE: NLR = No firearms license required. ALR = A type firearms license required.