U.S. experts are scratching their heads after finding a wild west rifle frozen in time — propped up against a tree where it appears to have been left more than 130 years ago.

    The Winchester Model 1873 firearm was found in a remote area of Nevada’s Great Basin National Park by park employee Eva Jensen, who happened to be working in the area with an archaeology team.

    Exposed for years to the elements, officials said the rifle’s cracked wood stock was “weathered to grey,” while the brown rusted barrel “blended into the colors of the old juniper tree.”

    Tucked into a remote rocky outcrop, the rifle appeared to have remained “hidden for many years”, they added .

    The gun’s serial number indicates it was made and shipped in 1882. But beyond that it remains a mystery.

    The Winchester Model 1873 rifle holds a prominent place in local history — referred to as “the gun that won the west.” Some 720,610 were manufactured between 1873 and 1916, when production ended. (SD-Agencies)