When I first started collecting - a revolver in this shape would've sat on the table for show after show, because of its condition.
That was back when 'patina' meant 'rust' - and today, there are so few examples coming up for sale that folks will pay exorbitant prices for them.
Back then - I remember a cased Model 1851 Navy Colt - with all accessories - priced at $125.
It took a couple of years before it left that dealer in a trade - and that was during the Centennial of the Civil War, when all manner of stuff came out of America's closets...
Times changed - available references got better and more numerous, as did photography - and folks started to want provenance if they were going to be asked high prices.
Today - we have a far, far better-educated collector who 'will' pay serious money for good, verifiable guns, so there's still fakery - but not quite as much - and dealers are far more forthcoming with information.
Didn't use to be that way...
Vaya,
Scouts Out!