Whether hunting the African savanna or the Texas plains, the gentleman sportsman deserves to field the finest in luxury and refinement. From specialized pieces to do-it-all generalists, there are countless big game rifles available on the market, and Rock Island Auction Company features exceptional options capable of tackling a wide range of game.

An outstanding factory master game scene engraved and gold inlaid Karl Hauptmann African big five themed sidelock dangerous game ejector double rifle in .470 Nitro Express, one of the best big game hunting rifles for sale at RIAC.

A hunter’s rifle is a substantial part of his character and not a choice to be taken lightly. In addition to accounting for factors such as caliber, hunting landscape, and the desired game being pursued, properties like round count, weight, accuracy, durability, and fit are also important considerations. And for those looking for an elegant big game rifle that doesn’t sacrifice performance and comfort, some of the examples from RIAC offers a handsome balance of innovation and artistry.

A Granite Mountain dangerous game rifle in .505 Gibbs, a classic elephant rifle in the spirit of Hemingway.

Big Game Rifles Through the Ages

Since the 1800s, explorers and dangerous game hunters have trusted their lives to the mighty double rifle. In the black powder era, massive guns evolved to take the largest game, and wealthy British hunters drove the demand for specialized sporting arms that could tackle the most dangerous beasts of India and Africa.

One of the best big game rifles featured at RIAC, this cased engraved and gold inlaid Alexander Henry .577 (Black Powder Express) Jones underlever double barrel rifle was owned by Prime Minister Salar Jung of Hyderabad.

While the double rifle came to dominate the cape shores of Africa, big game rifles in North America took on different forms. The American Bison, the undisputed king of the prairie, required accurate long-range options that could also pack a punch. Breechloading single shot rifles like the Sharps, the Trapdoor, and the Remington rolling block were widely used in the mid-to-late 19th century.

Theodore Roosevelt's personal collection. The Hawken was a popular big game rifle in North America, and this .70 caliber example would have been highly effective against bison.

In 1881, Marlin Fire Arms Co. offered a lever action rifle chambered in .45-70, a large enough cartridge to take on the imposing buffalo. The lever gun continued to dominate the market for North American big game rifles until the bolt action began gaining ground with sportsmen like Townsend Whelen in the early 20th century.

In the late 19th century, Marlin offered some of the best big game rifles for North American hunters.

Big Game Double Rifles

Africa’s “Big Five,” the leopard, lion, Cape buffalo, rhino, and elephant, are some of the most dangerous game that can be hunted today. In the case of the elephant, rhino, and Cape buffalo, the double rifle provides the stopping power needed to halt a charge from these ill-tempered beasts, with the capability of delivering a rapid follow-up shot with the press of a trigger.

One of the best big game rifles for sale, an incredible factory master Peter Spode signed and game scene engraved bicentenary Westley Richards .470 Nitro Express hand detachable droplock double rifle.

The double rifle pictured below, a Holland & Holland chambered in .500/450 Nitro Express, illustrates the practical but precision craftsmanship and classic aesthetic of these elegant big game rifles. Manufactured circa 1900, the weapon cuts a fine figure and displays the exceptional artistry that came to define the pinnacle of the genre. The trio of game scene engravings adorning this example include a lion poised to strike a wildebeest from the grass, a Bengal tiger preparing to pursue a trio of blackbuck, and an elephant standing proud on the rifle's underside.

An attractive factory game scene engraved Holland & Holland .500/450 Nitro Express sidelock double rifle.

European manufacturers continued to improve and innovate the double rifle platform throughout the 20th century. The 1999 dated example pictured below from German gunmaker Juch Grund is an extremely rare example of a three-barreled big game rifle that consists of two barrels in .416 Rigby located above a smaller barrel chambered for .300 Holland & Holland Magnum. With its included Zeiss Diavari VM 1.5-6x42mm T* scope, this exceptional triple rifle weighs in at 12 lbs. 11 oz, but it’s far from the heaviest big game rifle on the market.

One of the most unique big game rifles, this breathtaking factory master engraved and gold inlaid Juch Grund multi-caliber sidelock dangerous game ejector triple rifle is a true piece of artistry.

Double Rifle Ammunition

After the development of smokeless cartridges, double rifle ammunition evolved in a range of calibers. Big game rifles in .450/400 Nitro Express proved a popular early option for dangerous game hunters like Jim Corbett, a famed slayer of Indian maneaters. In 1907, English gunmaker Joseph Lang developed the .470 Nitro Express, a round that became a favored choice for taking Cape buffalo and elephants. Today, the .470 NE continues to serve as one of the most widely chambered double rifle cartridges.

A factory engraved, cased two barrel set of Krieghoff Classic dangerous game double rifle in .470 Nitro Express, one of the best big game rifles for sale.

Modern double rifles can be found chambered in everything from the comparatively modest .375 Holland & Holland to the imposing 4 bore and 2 bore, the true titans of big game rifles. Though large caliber double rifles are a heavy burden to carry around the hot African Savanna and present an equally daunting recoil, their sheer knockdown power is well-suited for the tense, up-close encounters experienced during safari hunts. The .500 Nitro Express offers a balance of potent stopping power that can still be managed by an experienced sportsman, and the round has a high success rate against even the mightiest of Africa’s Big Five.

One of the best hunting rifles for big game, a magnificent master Anja Dammenhayn signed, relief game scene engraved, and gold inlaid Westley Richards hand detachable droplock dangerous game double rifle in 500 Nitro.

Bolt Action Big Game Rifles for Africa

By the early 1900s, the bolt action magazine rifle started gaining traction with African hunters, offering a more economic alternative to the double rifle. A slew of big game cartridges were developed for the bolt action platform, including the .404 Jeffery in 1905, the .425 Westley Richards in 1909, the .416 Rigby in 1911, and the famous .375 H&H Magnum in 1912.

An H. L. “Pete” Grisel upgraded, game scene engraved and gold inlaid pre-64 Winchester Model 70 bolt action rifle in .375 Holland & Holland Magnum with a Schmidt & Bender scope, one of the best big game hunting rifles for sale.

Bolt action big game rifles chambered in large calibers offer greater distance and longer accuracy than double rifles while being fairly easy to clean, field strip, and maintain. They’re easy to shoot, reliable, and capable of multiple follow-up shots while still possessing the power to fell a charging elephant.

An upgraded pre-64 Winchester Model 70 Super Grade bolt action rifle in .458 Win Mag.

The .375 Holland & Holland Magnum became one of the most popular jack-of-all-trades options for big game rifles. Prolific African hunter John “Pondoro” Taylor, praised the .375 H&H Magnum as a capable cartridge for both double rifles and bolt action platforms, stating, “I've had five of these rifles—two doubles and three magazines—and have fired more than 5,000 rounds of .375 Magnum ammunition at game. One of them accounted for more than 100 elephant and some 411 buffalo, besides rhino, lions and lesser game.”

A factory master Diane Scalese signed, gold inlaid, and game scene engraved cased Kilimanjaro African bolt action rifle in .375 H&H Magnum, one of the most breathtaking big game rifles for sale.

For decades, the .416 Rigby was more of a novelty, with Rigby only producing 169 custom rifles built on the Magnum Mauser No. 5 receiver between 1912 and the end of WW2. Thanks to famed authors like Robert Ruark and Jack O’Connor, the .416 Rigby saw a resurgence in the 1950s and 1960s. In ‘The Rifle Book,’ O’Connor called the .416, “an outstanding cartridge,” possessing less recoil than the .450 Watts the author had used on prior African big game hunts.

An impressive factory engraved J. Rigby & Co. bolt action dangerous game rifle in .416 Rigby with a Swarovski scope.

Bolt Action Rifle Chamberings

Pictured below, the six consecutively serialized rifles from John Rigby & Co. demonstrate a small sample of the range of hunting rounds available for the modern bolt action platform. From a scaled-down action in .223 Remington to the massive .450 Rigby Magnum, one of the most potent bolt action big game rifles, today’s sportsman has no shortage of chamberings to consider.

Six of the finest big game rifles for sale this May at RIAC, this grouping of consecutively serialized Rigby rifles is a veritable tour de force in outstanding craftsmanship.

Today, .375 H&H is the minimum recommended cartridge for most dangerous game in many African countries. Referred to by Jack O’Connor as the “Queen of the Medium Bores,” .375 H&H offers good performance and a manageable recoil.

Most modern big game rifle manufacturers chamber the round, and ammunition is comparatively easy to find. The venerable cartridge is also popular with North American hunters and has inspired numerous variants like the .375 Weatherby Magnum.

A Weatherby Custom Shop Mark V Safari rifle in .460 Weatherby Magnum with scope.

In 1956, the Winchester Model 70 African bolt action rifle was chambered in the hefty .458 Winchester Magnum cartridge, an attempt by Winchester to compete with common double rifle rounds like the .450 and .470 NE. After failing to take down a Cape buffalo with the .458 Winchester, big game hunter Jack Lott designed a more potent variant in 1971 with the .458 Lott.

A Kimber Model 8400 Caprivi bolt action rifle in .458 Lott with a Swarovski scope.

In 1994, John Rigby & Co. developed the .450 Rigby Magnum Rimless for bolt action big game rifles. Based on the iconic .416 Rigby cartridge, the .450 Rigby Magnum Rimless is necked up to accept a .458 bullet and can stand toe-to-toe with big hitters like the .458 Lott. A plethora of even heavier bolt action hunting rounds are available today, including the .577 Tyrannosaur, .585 Nyati, and .585 Gehringer.

A massive factory engraved J. Rigby & Co. bolt action dangerous game rifle in .450 Rigby with a Zeiss Scope and a grouping of desirable Kynoch .450 Rigby Magnum rimless cartridges, with five 50-count cases in total.

Big Game Rifles for the New World

Many of the heavier cartridges mentioned above are not only overpowered for most North American game but also more costly compared to the likes of .338 Win. Mag. and .338 Lapua Mag. A favorite of the great Elmer Keith, .338 Win. Mag can take anything from a bull elk to a Kodiac brown bear.

A G. McMillan & Co. Standard Grade Signature Model bolt action sporting rifle in .338 Win. Mag. with a Schmidt & Bender scope, one of the best hunting rifles for big game in North America.

When it comes to do-it-all North American big game rifles, the Winchester Model 70 ranks high on the list. In his book on the gun, author Roger Rule dubbed the Model 70 “The Rifleman’s Rifle.” While the modern Winchester Model 70 is a fine hunting platform, the hand craftsmanship of the pre-64 action is particularly revered. The pre-64 Winchester Model 70 rifle below features an upgraded chambering in .338 Win. and a Swarovski scope, an elegant combination of classic and modern sensibilities that would meet the approval of both Keith and Rule.

An upgraded Winchester Model 70 in .338 Win. Mag. with a Swarovski scope.

Developed as a sniper cartridge, the .338 Lapua Mag. shoots much flatter than .375 H&H, an ideal trait for big game rifles fielded in the wide-open country of the Great Plains. When pairing .338 Lapua Mag. with an accurate platform like the Blaster R-93, you have a hunting arm capable of stretching shots beyond 800 yards in the hands of an experienced sportsman.

A desirable Blaser GmbH R93 Tactical 2 straight pull bolt action sniper rifle in .338 Lapua Mag. with a Nightforce scope and accessories.

Lever Action Big Game Rifles

According to Winchester, .30-30 has killed “more North American big game than any other cartridge.” Given the popularity of the Winchester Model 94 over the decades, this statement may be true when it comes to whitetails. In 1965, Marlin introduced both the Model 444 and the .444 Marlin cartridge, a lever action meant to tackle the biggest North American game. Today, lever actions are available in cartridges like .338 Federal and .338 Marlin, both capable of taking elk and moose.

A documented antique special order Winchester Deluxe Model 1894 with factory letter, chambered in the rare and desirable .38-55, this is one of the earliest examples of the platform and was received in the Winchester warehouse on November 21, 1895.

Single Shot Big Game Rifles

Large bore single shot rifles were the original platform for taking big game around the globe. The classic Winchester Model 1885, the first gun design patented by the legendary John Moses Browning, has continued to see action thanks to advances in ammunition technology. Today, modern .45-70 is capable of taking moose and elk, though at a more limited range than some of the cartridges mentioned above.

A factory master game scene engraved, signed, and cased pair of Browning Model 1885 Bicentennial single shot rifles presented to President Gerald R. Ford Jr. in 1976. Chambered in .45-70 Government.

Big Game Rifles for Sale

If you’re planning your next hunting adventure, RIAC’s May 17-19 Premier Firearms Auction includes big game rifles suitable for any quarry. In addition to the sportsmen and shooters who appreciate the history and allure of the hunting pursuit, collectors and arms enthusiasts will value the precision craftsmanship and exceptional artistry found within this fascinating genre.

Rock Island Auction Company offers big game rifles for sale from every era, style, and price point available.

To recieve more gun blogs and gun videos on modern and classic sporting arms, subscribe to the Rock Island Auction newsletter, where we cover topics like the bench rest rifle, the Savage 99, the Browning Citori shotgun, the Winchester Model 42, the M30 drilling, the Hawken rifle, flintlock rifle hunting, and more.

An Alison Hunt signed, engraved, and gold inlaid J. Rigby & Co. sidelock dangerous game double rifle with case, chambered in .416 Rigby.