it is a fact that Damascus barrels were often speck'd on later guns at the beginning of the smokeless era, in fact many shot gunners preferred the barrels when compared to the early steel barrels and the prices were higher for the Damascus guns versus the early sheet steel barrels

the difference in quality was in the number of wires (steel and iron) that created the laminated steel in the Damascus barrels a barrel made with an 8 wire twist was stronger than one with a 3 wire twist

here is a good resource on these barrels
https://sites.google.com/a/damascusk...e.com/www/home