Just to answer my curiosity, why is the date of January 1, 1869 significant? Here in the states the important date is January 1, 1899 on which the ATF considers a gun to no longer be an antique. In that light, all S&W tip up revolvers are considered antiques. Since you are in Germany, I can only assume that your laws use a different date and hence your inquiry.
As others have stated, you can send for a History letter for $75 (may be higher for non US) or you could join the S&WCA for $60 (may be higher for non US) and ask Roy Jinks for the shipping date. You are only allowed 1 request per week so potentially you can get 52 shipping dates per year.
Either way they are neat guns and were the beginning of the S&W legacy.
