Good find!
Interesting, they had 3 variation of the Silverballer before finalizing in what it is today.
First version is the Baller from Hitman 2 Silent Assassin you see in some cutscenes ingame
A second version instead never before seen is the same pistol above but with the Pachmayr grips you find on the Silverballer.
Another version is the og Silverballer but with the medallions on the grips gold. You will find this version only in the initial cutscene of the first mission Asylum Aftermath.
Same version was pulled from somewhere but for unknown reason it seems the developers said “naaaah, silver is better”. Too bad, gold gives it a nice mafia vibe.
I updated my post on the history of the Silverballer with this information: