I seem to remember an article saying the same thing in the Waidmannsheil quite a few years ago. Dietrich Apel may even have been the one that wrote it.
I've had a number of O/U and cape guns that were referred to as Guild Guns. If one looked at them carefully, on occasion i could find a little innocuous circle M somewhere. I knew that M did not mean Guild Meister, but most likely the Gerbuders Merkel. My old 8x57/16 Leopard gun is a great example.
Some of the early guns can be tracked to at least the area that they were proofed. Unless somebody kept scrupulous records, or the original owner was famous, we will probably never know the maker. So, like a well made unmarked pocket watch, you just need to love them for what they are.
Bfly
