The Cody Firearms Museum, located at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming, is an icon. This incredible museum houses what they advertise as “the most comprehensive collection of American firearms in the world.” With the current count of more than 7000 guns and some 30,000 gun-related artifacts, this bold claim is well warranted. The museum is not publicly funded but is supported in part by admission tickets, tours and events, and membership options. Recently, GunBroker.com teamed up with Ruger’s Custom Shop, artist Paul Lantuch and Baron Engraving, and Rangehot photographer Hunter Elliott to further support this important institution. These entities collaborated to offer an auction benefiting the museum, for a gorgeous one-of-a-kind .45LC Ruger revolver, dubbed the “Jade Vaquero”. Check out the Jade Vaquero’s auction page here for details, and to see how much it sold for, and see below for a copy of GunBroker’s announcement for more.

The Cody Firearms Museum @ TFB:

• VK Integrated Systems Donates NGSW-R/AR to Cody Firearms Museum
• The Cody Firearms Museum’s Arsenals of History Symposium Returns!
• Davidson’s Exclusive Cody Firearms Museum Series Original Henry
• Free Printable Coloring Book From The Cody Firearms Museum
• The Cody Firearms Museum Grand Opening on July 6th

Artist Paul Lantuch worked with the Ruger Custom Shop to create this one-off masterpiece revolver. The Jade Vaquero features this 24k gold eagle on the blast shield.

The Jade Vaquero, One-of-a-Kind Masterpiece, Auction Benefits Cody Firearms Museum

There are some beautiful collector guns in the world. Then, there are guns that transcend the understanding of beauty into pure art. The Jade Vaquero is such a gun. And it is being featured in the 2024 SHOT Show auction.

This one-of-a-kind, single-action .45 Colt revolver contains custom features that make this handgun a masterpiece, and just might turn it into a legacy. The handles are made of hand-carved jade, a stone once associated with nobility, and is what gives the gun its name. It is also what gives this handgun a look and feel like no other. The handles are gorgeous yet simple; tough but delicate; and art but functional. Of course, a collector might not want to fire this gun but he or she could.

This 7.5-inch barreled handgun also contains extensive hand-engraving by Paul Lantuch. This piece of art then received 22-karat gold inlayed into the engraving, including the Ruger emblem, to make it truly unique, as well as valuable.

The Jade Vaquero package includes a custom wood box wrapped in Nubian goat skin leather to increase the presentation factor. Everything about this gun, in fact, is a testament to craftsmanship and the amazing history of firearm engraving. This includes to where the auction’s proceeds are heading.

Benefiting Cody Firearms Museum 

The auction is a result of a collaboration that includes Sturm, Ruger & Co., Inc., the Ruger Custom Shop, artist Paul Lantuch and Baron Engraving, along with photographer Hunter Elliott of Rangehot, to benefit the Cody Firearms Museum in Cody, Wy. The Jade Vaquero embodies the history of firearms, along with the craftsman who worked tirelessly to create masterful works of art. This means this gun matches the mission of the museum for which its helping.

“This gun is fitting of the Cody Firearms Museum and the buyer is truly buying a historic piece,” said David Miles, president & CEO of Baron Engraving. “It could be displayed in the Cody Firearms Museum 100 years from now. We are honored to do our part to help in the education of future firearms owners, along with the preservation of the history of firearms.”

The Jade Vaquero will be featured at the Baron Engraving booth (12801) at the 2024 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. The auction ends on January 26 at 3 p.m., the last day of the show. The auction, however, is available to all on GunBroker.com.

The Jade Vaquero Specs

• Model: Ruger Vaquero
• Barrel Length: 7 1/2″
• Caliber: .45 Long Colt
• Engravings: Extensive hand engraving by Paul Lantuch
• 22K gold: eagle three-dimensional overlay on the blast shield, with gold inlay coverage on cylinder, frame, grip frame, barrel, and ejector housing.
• Grips: Custom made Siberian jade grip panels
• Serial Number: 58-75092

The Cody Firearms Museum, founded in 1991, will receive the proceeds of this benefit auction in support of their important cultural work.

The Jade Vaquero auction ended on January 26th, the last day of SHOT Show, having received 60 bids. It started as one of Gunbroker’s famous penny auctions, and climbed from that first $0.01 bid to a sale price well into the five figures. One hundred percent of those proceeds will be donated to the fantastic cause that is the Cody Firearms Museum. This beautiful piece of functional artwork will feature as a phenomenal showpiece in the winning bidder’s firearms collection, in addition to serving the noble purpose of helping the museum to continue their excellent work. If you have the ability to support the Cody Firearms Museum through any other means, including going to visit the tremendous facility for yourself, please consider doing so. See you at the range!

Images courtesy of GunBroker.com.