Gahendra Socket Bayonet

Socket bayonet for use with the caliber .577/450 Gahendra and Francotte rifles. Essentially, a crude copy of the British Pattern 1876 bayonet, with a larger diameter socket.

The Gahendra and Francotte rifles were Nepal-produced redesigns of the British Martini-Henry, incorporating advanced features found on the Peabody and Westley-Richards rifles. The barrels had thicker walls, making the outside diameter too large to accept the Pattern 1876 bayonet used with the British Martini-Henry.

This example is from a 43-ton cache of weaponry removed from the Royal Nepalese Armory at the Palace of Lagan Silekhana in 2003. Near Katmandu, the Armory housed more than 50,000 firearms; over 150 ancient bronze cannon; tens of thousands of bayonets; and all manner of tools and accessories. The Nepalese were thrifty in the extreme. From the 1830’s onward, it was as if the Armory threw nothing away. Read more about the "Nepal Cache" and my experience breathing new life into a Pattern 1853 Enfield rifle-musket.

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