The hunting rifle from the museum collection was redesigned by a Russian gunsmith using a Berdan rifle No. 2. It was done at a factory around the turn of the 20th century. This rifle was used by hunters in the Onega Uyezd of the Arkhangelsk Governorate.

The Berdan rifle No. 2 was used in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–1878. It was adopted by the Imperial Russian Army in 1870 as a “rapid-fire, small-caliber rifle with a slide action”.

After that, Russian gunmakers introduced several improvements to the rifle’s design, making it more advanced and reliable. Large-scale production was organized at the Tula Arms Factory in 1879. A 10.75mm cartridge for the 4.2-line rifle. Ammunition was manufactured at the St. Petersburg State Cartridge Plant.

In total, about three million Berdan rifles of various modifications were produced. At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century, the Berdan rifle began to be replaced with the 1891 Mosin rifle. However, due to a lack of new weapons, the Berdan rifle continued to be used by squads and other military formations as a temporary weapon until rearmament was completed.

These rifles were still in use during the First World War. After they were decommissioned in 1898–1899, the Berdan rifles No. 2 were sold to hunters. To improve their characteristics, they were converted into smooth-bore rifles. The barrel was bored to such calibers as .12, .14, .16, or .20.

The average price of rifles ranged from 14 to 18 rubles, depending on the quality of modifications and caliber. At the Imperial Tula Arms Factory, rifles were rebored to other calibers, including .32 and .44. They were converted to Winchester cartridges and used as carbines for big game hunting.

On the White Sea, rifles were used for hunting sea animals. Seals were hunted in March. The locals looked for them on the land ice belt and moving ice floes. In the forests, .12 to .20 caliber rifles were used to hunt birds and small animals, firing shot and bullets at short distances.