M1889 DANISH KRAG

In 1889, Denmark became the first country to officially adopt the Krag design -- followed by the United States in 1892 and Norway in 1894. My particular long rifle is a much-used early example with an excellent bore -- made in 1891 and bearing a four-digit serial number. Early rifles, such as this one, had bores with six-groove polyagonal "Rasmussen" rifling.

The Danish design was one of only three officially-accepted military rifles which substituted thin steel jackets for wooden handguards (the other two being the German GEW 88 "Commission" rifle and the M1889 Belgian Mauser). In the image below you can clearly see the barrel jacket and the end of the barrel protruding from the steel nosecap. The steel nosecap has an integral bayonet lug on the bottom and the front sight base on the top. (These rifles have no provision for a cleaning rod.)