This pretty French phonograph from the early 1900s plays two-minute cylinder recordings. It came in a velvet lined, faux leather case.
Ad from the Petit Parisien newspaper of October 1902.
r_swaney@msn.com · ·
This pretty French phonograph from the early 1900s plays two-minute cylinder recordings. It came in a velvet lined, faux leather case.
Ad from the Petit Parisien newspaper of October 1902.
r_swaney@msn.com · ·
The Mikiphone was manufactured by the Swiss company Maison Paillard. They produced between 150,000 and 200,000 of them in the mid 1920’s. At 4″ in diameter and under two pounds it is the smallest portable phonograph. Though it is pictured with a small record it is capable of playing full-size ones. In place of a horn, it uses a Bakelite resonator box which breaks into two parts for packing. A diagram in the lid shows how to just barely fit all the parts inside.
r_swaney@msn.com · ·
This is a combination phonograph and lamp manufactured by Burns & Pollock in the 1920s. The turntable is driven by an electric motor, but there is no electrical amplification. The base of the lamp doubles as the horn, directing the sound down and out. There are two lightbulbs below the phonograph and a small bulb next to the turntable.
r_swaney@msn.com · ·
This is a model 460 HMV Lumiere in an oak case. HMV (His Master’s Voice) was a brand of the Gramophone Company Ltd. of London. The Lumiere gramophone replaced the usual reproducer, tone arm and horn with a pleated paper diaphragm. The center of the diaphragm is directly connected to the needle via a thin metal lever. The Lumiere was not a commercial success and was only manufactured for two years (1924-1925).
r_swaney@msn.com · ·
Gem roller organs were made by the Autophone Co. of Ithaca, NY from the mid-1800s to the 1900s. This is a very early model; later ones have an enclosed bellows. It is also known as a cob organ because the music is provided on a cob-sized wooden cylinder with inserted steel pins. As the cylinder rotates, the pins press the valve covers to open them.
One of the least expensive organettes, it was advertised in the Sears catalog for $3.25. It has 20 notes.
(photo provided by Harold Draper of Roller Organ Restorations)