CODY, Wyo. (AP) — An abandoned, weathered Winchester rifle dating back to the 1800s is now on display in the Cody Firearms Museum at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Wyoming.
The gun was found last year leaning against a juniper tree in Great Basin National Park in a remote area of northeastern Nevada.
The Winchester Model 1873 lever-action rifle has been the subject of much speculation regarding who originally owned it and why it was left abandoned.
After it was found, officials took it to the Cody museum for conservation and identification.
The Powell Tribune reports that museum staff determined the forgotten gun had been manufactured in 1883.
The rifle will remain on display in the Cody Firearms Museum until this fall, when it will be returned to Great Basin.