Louis Daniel Nimschke (July 4, 1832 – April 29, 1904) was a master firearms engraver of the 19th century who engraved over 5,000 firearms between 1850 and 1904 for Colt's Patent Fire Arms Co.,

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, Remington, Sharps,

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and

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Early life

Born in Germany in 1832, Nimschke moved to the United States in 1850 at the age of 18 and began engraving jewelry, silverware, watch cases and dog collars. Nimschke was trained in both the European style of engraving which was represented by fine delicate lines and the bolder American style characterized by his scrollwork.

Engraving

Unlike most engravers of the 19th century who worked directly for firearms manufacturers, Nimschke maintained his own shop in

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and took work on a contractual basis. His main client was New York outfitter Schuyler, Hartley and Graham. When a special custom order that required utmost detail needed to be filled the firearms companies would commission Nimschke for the work. Ninschke engraved firearms for

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, Ben Thompson, and

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, Emperor of France. Nimschke's work is on display at many museums throughout the world including the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

. Many engravers emulated his style, which has become known today as "Nimschke School" or "New York Style" of engraving.

References

External links

Colt Revolver engraved by Nimschke
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nimschke, Louis D. 1832 births 1904 deaths American engravers Emigrants from the German Confederation to the United States Gunsmiths