This Third Model Winchester 1873 Musket was manufactured c. 1902 and has the distinctive 30 inch barrel with full-length forearm, three barrel bands, block front sight base that serves as a lug for a socket bayonet, military style folding leaf rear sight and carbine buttplate. Sling swivels are mounted on the middle barrel band and the stock. The musket has the Third Model receiver with integral dust cover rail and dust cover with serrated edges. The buttplate has a sliding brass trapdoor and the butt trap contains a four-piece, jointed, steel cleaning rod. The barrel, magazine, barrel bands and receiver have the Winchester commercial blue finish. The loading gate is niter blue. The hammer, loading lever, buttplate and lever latch are color casehardened. The oil-finished stock and forearm are straight grain American walnut. The top of the barrel is roll-stamped with the two-line legend "WINCHESTER'S REPEATING ARMS. NEW HAVEN. CT./KING'S IMPROVEMENT PATENTED MARCH 29. 1866. OCTOBER 16. 1860." between the lower barrel band and the rear sight. The caliber "44 W.C.F" is roll-stamped on the top of the barrel behind the rear sight. "44 Cal." is roll-stamped in script letters on the bottom of the brass cartridge elevator. "-MODEL 1873-" is roll-stamped on the upper tang in fancy letters with foliate devices at either end. The serial number "569721B" is stamped in script numerals on the lower tang between the lever latch and the upper tang screw. This musket appears to be one of approximately 700 Model 1873 Muskets shipped to Nicaragua in September 1903. Some of these muskets were apparently never uncrated and were discovered in the original crates in unissued condition in the 1950s and returned to the United States for resale.