Making their mark

Say the words ‘bespokegunmaking’ and the image that’s conjured is of a high-end luxury sidelock, game scene engraved, with the client’s favourite Fido on the underside. Nothing unusual there, except today the talent employed to engrave these guns is more often female than ever before. In the past, female engravers were relatively rare and often the daughters of established male engravers, such as Alison Hunt, daughter of Ken Hunt, in England, or Francesca Fracassi, daughter of Firmo Fracassi, in Italy.

Lately, rock star female engravers have discovered new platforms to express themselves. The demand for ‘functional artwork’ is opening doors for them as never before. Kirsty Smith at Holland & Holland (H&H), Frédérique Lépinois for Westley Richards, Cécile