Beretta SL3 “Tutankhamon”
Debuted at the 51st annual Safari Club International’s convention this week in Nashville, Tennessee, the Tutankhamon is based on an SL3 12-gauge over-and-under complete with Steelium hyper-polished 30-inch Optimabore-HP barrels. The SL3 series is handmade in the Pietro Beretta Selection Custom Atelier in Gardone Val Trompia, Italy, and is the company’s premium factory O/U, with a starting price typically in the low $20K range.
Going far past the standard factory fit on this EELL grade – the company’s highest grade when it comes to wood selection, fit and finish, and engraving intricacy – the one-of-a-kind Tutankhamon marks the recent 100th anniversary of the discovery of King Tutankhamon’s tomb by Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon in Egypt’s Valley of Kings.
With Grade 5 European walnut furniture that is hand checkered with a Tru-Oil finish, the metal surfaces of the SL3 Tutankhamon underwent 1,000 hours of Bulino-style hand engraving by master engraver Luca Casari. The hand inlays in Gold, Green Gold, Silver, and Copper are highlighted by a hammer and chisel technique for the background beating. Going past King Tut, other royal figures depicted on the shotgun include Queens Nefertiti and Ankhesenamun; the gods Horus and Anubus; and assorted desert themes, hieroglyphs, and all the other imagery you are familiar with via the “Mummy” franchise.
On this gun, a photo really does say a thousand words, and we have a whole gallery of them.
Beretta SO10 “Italian Cities”
A pair of shotguns celebrating a trio of Italy’s most famous cities– Rome, Florence (Firenze), and Venice (Venezia)– the Italian Cities also come from the Beretta Custom Atelier. Based on the company’s fully-custom line of SO10 side-by-side shotguns, which start at about $130K, the Italian Cities take full advantage of the type’s seamless demi-block barrel profile and the hand-detachable sidelock action with no visible screws or pins to fill every inch with intricate inlays by master engravers.
“Some stories and places are just timeless – think of some of the most famous Italian cities, whose heritage and history became so popular abroad, they now represent the whole Country and its culture across the whole world,” notes Beretta on the shotgun pair. “Paying visit to these places allows to breathe and witness millennia of history and beauty, the origins of the western world as we know it today.”
Of course, fans of Milan, Naples, Palermo, and other great Italian cities will probably feel a bit snubbed, but you have to admire the craftsmanship nonetheless.
