Lynton McKenzie (December 21, 1940–February 9, 1999) was an Australian-born Americanengraver. McKenzie engraved for heads of state all over the world and worked on some of the world's most valuable antiquefirearms.
McKenzie was born inRockhampton,Central Queensland, Australia, on December 21, 1940. He became interested ingunsmithing at age eleven, andengraving at fourteen. By his late teens, McKenzie was considered Australia's leading gunsmith.[1][2]
McKenzie travelled to Europe carrying letters of introduction from the premier and prime minister of Australia, allowing him to study engraved firearms from museums and private collections. He studied engraving with masters in Belgium and Italy, and spent six years inLondon where he engraveddouble rifles andshotguns for firms such asHolland & Holland,Purdey and Sons, andRigby. He restored antique European firearms for museums, wealthy collectors, theTower of London, and theQueen's Collection. The last major firearm that McKenzie restored was a 1652 Louis XIV, built at the Royal Armory inLyon, France.[1][2]
In 1980, McKenzie moved toTucson, Arizona in the United States.[1] He decorated two of five rifles for theSafari Club International's Big Five Classic Masterpiece Collection. The guns were built by the Tucson-based David Miller Co. The first gun, commemorating the elephant, sold for $41,000 in 1982, and the fifth gun, commemorating the leopard, sold for $201,000 in 1986.[3][4]
McKenzie's work was respected worldwide. He engraved items for theSultan of Brunei, theSaudi royal family, and British heads of state. According to Bill Quimby, director of publications for Safari Club International, McKenzie was one of the two top engravers in the world (along with engraverWinston Churchill).[1]