Mauser M03 "The Ghost & The Darkness"

The M 03 The Ghost & The Darkness are Mauser rifles in Meisterklasse or Master Class, a exclusive line of custom-made, hand-engraved rifles from Mauser. It can come in any caliber from 222 Remington to 458 Lott. 1898 became the year of breathtaking legends: the "Ghost" and "Darkness" lions spread fear and terror in the region of Tsavo in present-day Kenya. The predators are said to have killed up to 135 railway workers before they were shot by John Henry Petterson, a passionate big game hunter. 1898 was the same year the Mauser brothers developed the legendary M98 bolt action rifle. Mauser's master engraver Hendrik Frühauf took the opportunity to immortalise the legend in two Mauser M 03 rifles. The most captivating engraved elements are the heads of the two big cats on the magazine base plates. Frühauf understands like no other how to bring the lions to life through the three-dimensionality of his engravings. It seems almost as if the two predators are leaping towards each other. Both rifles have a lot in common, just like the hunting techniques of the two man-eaters: the intricate golden inlays as well as the gold nitrated cocking lever, bolt head and trigger fit with the truly noble image of the kings of the beasts and the almost golden African sun. One of the paws of each of these scary predators can be found on the bolt handle and the metal parts of the rifles are engraved with thorns, inspired by the African bushland. The high quality grade 9 wood stocks have a red stock cap and your eyes become transfixed on the exclusive black ebony fore end tip. The overall appearance is rounded off by the great attention to detail: the outlines of present-day Kenya and Tsavo and the roaming areas of the two predators are immortalised on the pistol grip caps. The two Mauser M 03s are available as "sister rifles." Although the two guns are similar, each of the big game bolt action rifles is still a work of art in itself: "the Ghost" appears truly ghost-like thanks to its extremely light, fine-grained stock and all of the metal parts of the rifle have an extremely light nitrate finish. "The Darkness" has a very dark, high quality grained stock and the metal parts also have a deep burnished black finish. This ensures that the rifle lives up to the lion's name. The Mauser M 03 rifles are designed for big game hunting.