Written by a technical expert who has fired many of the guns featured, this book includes wide and varied assemblage of weapons from each of the world’s major manufacturing countries. The Illustrated Directory series provide readers with a fully illustrated, comprehensive reference book packed with timelines, historical facts, and images designed to inform and excite. At 512 pages packed with information and photographs, this book is a necessary addition to any enthusiast's library. Complete with full specification table with each entry including type, origin, caliber, and size, The Illustrated Directory of Guns is the most ambitious and lavishly illustrated history of guns for the collector and enthusiast. It shows in clear, detailed photographs and text over 1500 guns with separate sections on Pistols, Revolvers, Rifles, Shotguns (military and sporting), Machine Guns, and Submachine guns. A few featured include: Remington Smith & Wesson Winchester Glock Vickers Mauser Browning Colt Beretta And more Organized A-Z by country and gunmaker's name, the book clearly shows the different types of gun which the world has used to hunt, wage war, break and defend its laws, hone its sharpshooting skills, and fire purely for the fun of it. The book also features an introduction on each section, which gives a brief history of the development of that particular kind of firearm.

This fascinating visual account of firearms shows everything from the earliest cannons to modern weapons of war. It also highlights how gun technology and military tactics developed in tandem over time. Centuries ago, the Chinese discovered that if they put gunpowder and a projectile into a metal tube and ignited it, they could fire the projectile with enormous force. The first guns were born. Firearms: An Illustrated History showcases over 300 firearms including pistols, revolvers, rifles, shotguns, machine-guns, and artillery, each with annotated close-up photographs and details of their origins, barrel, and caliber. It details the use of the firearms, not just in the military but for sport, hunting, and law enforcement. This comprehensive volume traces the history of firearms, highlighting "turning points" such as the rifle with its parallel spiraled groves that could impart a spin to bullets making them fly straighter. It also showcases iconic firearms such as the Walther PPK self-loading pistol popularised in James Bond films. With information on the great gunsmiths including Beretta and Kalashnikov and a detailed guide to how guns work, Firearms: An Illustrated History is an essential purchase for everyone interested in guns and military history.

For the first time in paperback, a photographic history of civilization, as seen through the world's most deadly and fascinating firearms. The Illustrated History of Guns is a comprehensive look at the tools of battle. To craft this book, more than five hundred photographs of genuine specimens were specially commissioned from the six-thousand-piece collection of the Berman Museum of World History. The weapons featured span a period of close to four thousand years, ranging from Ancient Greece to World War II, and from the Crusades in Europe to the US Civil War. It features a wide array of diverse treasures, including the traveling pistols of Confederate president Jefferson Davis, a royal Persian scimitar with 1,295 rose-cut diamonds and rubies, and a single 11-carat emerald set in gold, first owned by Shah Abbas I of Persia and given in tribute to Catherine the Great. The Illustrated History of Guns also offers information on weapons innovators, including Alexander Forsyth, Eliphalet Remington, Samuel Colt, Sergei Mosin, the Mauser brothers, Hiram Maxim, John Browning, Richard Gatling, John T. Thompson, John Garland, Feodor Tokarev, Oliver Winchester, and Mikhail Kalashnikov. With unparalleled historical perspective and background on persons significant to the development and advancements of weapons technology or military strategy, The Illustrated History of Guns belongs on the shelf of every history buff and firearms enthusiast.

Showcasing more than 1,700 firearms in full color! From the earliest hand cannons dating back to 1350, to the finest sporting rifles of the 21st Century, this 2nd edition of The Illustrated History of Firearms covers them all. Spectacular, full-color photos of more than 1,700 guns with detailed captions walk readers through the background and development of virtually every type of firearm ever created, and the people who influenced their use and designs. More than a reference book, The Illustrated History of Firearms brings context to the role firearms have played in shaping world events while also charting the development of today's guns for self-defense, competition, recreation and hunting. Painstakingly researched by expert curators at the NRA National Firearms Museum in Fairfax, Virginia, this 320-page, hardbound work of art is as educational as it is beautiful. Whether you're an avid gun collector or shooter, a history buff, or simply want to better understand the seemingly countless types of firearms in today's world, this book is a must-have.

This significant tome, with over 1500 photographs, covers the subject of portable firearms from muzzle-loaders to machine guns; from revolvers to machine pistols; from muskets to automatics; from derringers to submachineguns. Compiled by experts whose hands-on knowledge and skill comes over in text and captions, The Illustrated History of Firearms provides a visual reference book to grace any aficionado’s library.

An encyclopedic look at firearms.

This set of encyclopedias covers the complete history of firearms. It features directories of arms from many parts of the world, organised according to country of manufacture. It includes key specifications for each weapon, including calibre, magazine capacity, barrel length and unloaded weight.