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Arburo Orchestrion Organ By Bursens And Roels
By Arburo
Located in New Orleans, LA
Once a fixture in bustling dance halls, cafés and fairgrounds throughout Belgium and the Netherlands in early to mid-20th century, this incredibly rare, early Orchestrion organ is a masterpiece of automated music. Crafted by the Arburo firm run by Arthur Bursens and Gustav Roels, this mechanical marvel is essentially an entire band set within an elegantly constructed Art Deco cabinet. No two Orchestrions were ever created alike and each was made-to-order, one at a time. Each was crafted entirely by hand, even down to the paper music rolls...
Category
20th Century Belgian Art Deco Musical Instruments
Materials
Wood
19th Century Swiss Gold Musical Vinaigrette
Located in New Orleans, LA
This early 19th century Swiss gold vinaigrette has the charming addition of a musical mechanism. The entire box is crafted of 14-karat yellow gold envelo...
Category
Antique 19th Century Swiss Neoclassical Decorative Boxes
Materials
Gold, Enamel
Polyphon Autochange Disk Music Box
Located in New Orleans, LA
As exceptionally scarce as it is fascinating, this autochange disk player by the Polyphon Musikwerke in Leipzig, Germany can change between six disks and play with the incredibly rare addition of bells that accompany the music. Before a coin is dropped into the slot, slide the brass indicator until it points to the desired music selection, insert a penny, and the chosen song will play automatically. An extremely limited number of these automatic disk changers were ever created, and even fewer have survived in such outstanding condition.
Standing over seven feet tall, this particular model boasts a magnificent walnut case with handsome burl panels on its original, matching storage cabinet. A true technical marvel for its day, Polyphon’s automatic disk changer symbolizes pure ingenuity and superlative craftsmanship. This antique player...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century German Other Musical Instruments
Materials
Brass
Mermod Fréres Station Cylinder Music Box
By Mermod Frères 1
Located in New Orleans, LA
This exceptionally wonderful and rare automaton cylinder musical box by the Mermod Fréres firm of Sainte-Croix, Switzerland is a marvel of musical crafts...
Category
Antique 19th Century Swiss Other Musical Instruments
Materials
Walnut
Swiss Station Cylinder Music Box
Located in New Orleans, LA
Tiny dancers twirl to the melodious tunes produced by this Swiss station cylinder music box. The cylinder is joined by a drum and bells that give richness and depth to the wonderful music the box creates. Music boxes were at the height of fashion in the late 19th century and served as a status symbol for the European gentry. Switzerland was the birthplace of cylinder music boxes and home to the great majority of the most renowned manufacturers. This example, in its finely crafted English walnut case, boasts two combs, allowing the box to play in harmony for a richer, more complex song.
This particular style, commonly referred to as a “station” or “showcase” box, was used to entertain guests in hotel lobbies, train stations and other similar public places, and as such would have been coin-operated. This example, however, does not accept coins. This, combined with its overall quality, complexity and beauty, indicates it was made for a private household of significant means. Today, these ingenious musical masterpieces are highly sought-after by collectors of musical automata...
Category
Antique 19th Century Swiss Other Musical Instruments
Materials
Brass
Hupfeld Phonoliszt-Violina Model B Music Cabinet
Located in New Orleans, LA
This incredible Hupfeld Phonoliszt-Violina Model B music cabinet is among the rarest and most advanced automatic music players of its time. The remarkable machine, crafted by renowned Leipzig firm of Ludwig Hupfeld, is one of the most mechanically complex music players ever made, boasting three self-playing violins accompanied by a self-playing piano. Once made in the 1000s to entertain patrons of upscale hotels, restaurants, and cafes, these extraordinary machines...
Category
20th Century German Other Musical Instruments
Materials
Wood
Mandolin Singing Bird Automaton Music Box
Located in New Orleans, LA
This exceptional singing bird cylinder music box is a wonder of Austrian mechanical ingenuity. Not only does it play a selection of classical airs with remarkable tone and clarity, but its lush sound is accompanied by a colorful, singing bird automaton...
Category
Antique 19th Century Austrian Other Musical Instruments
Materials
Satinwood
Regina Upright Music Box
By Regina Company
Located in New Orleans, LA
An extraordinary and rare coin-operated Regina Sublima upright music box crafted by the Regina music box company, one of the most recognized music bo...
Category
Antique 19th Century American Other Musical Instruments
Materials
Oak
Swiss Gold Musical Snuff Box
Located in New Orleans, LA
This special and important Swiss gold music box is chased and engraved with a set of musical instruments surrounded by elaborate swirls of ornate foliage. Embossed with a delightful braided gold design, the two-compartment box features an exquisite oval agate key, which opens a recessed lock in the base of the box. Such a box would have been a prized possession and would have been able to fit neatly into a gentleman’s waistcoat pocket.
Ingenious miniature portable devices, musical snuff boxes...
Category
Antique 19th Century Swiss Other Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes
Materials
Gold
Musical Jewelry and Sewing Casket
Located in New Orleans, LA
This charming musical jewelry and sewing box is a work of sublime artistry. Almost certainly German or Austrian in origin and crafted of deep, ebonized...
Category
Early 20th Century Austrian Other Decorative Boxes
Materials
Multi-gemstone
The Mills Double Deluxe Violano Virtuoso
By Mills Novelty Company
Located in New Orleans, LA
One of only a handful ever made, this Double DeLuxe Violano Virtuoso, created by the Mills Novelty Company, is an extremely rare example of American musical automata, featuring not one, but two brilliantly tuned violins. Singled out by the U.S. government in 1909 as one of the eight greatest inventions of the decade when it was introduced at the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition, the Mills DeLuxe Violano-Virtuoso stands as one of the most important and incredible musical devices ever made. The “Double Mills,” as it was nicknamed, plays classical, operatic and popular music. It can play on a single or up to 15 nickels and has the ability to run for approximately an hour. It produces exceptional sound with a crisp tonal quality and melodious notes. Housed in a beautiful quarter-sawn oak case, each violin produces 64 notes and is accompanied by a 44-note piano.
It is truly rare to find a historical musical mechanism so complete, with such remarkable sound quality and in excellent condition. This particular Violano has been updated with a digital player system that allows song selections to be made over a WiFi connection. This gives the user a choice between digital downloads or traditional paper rolls for added convenience.
Perfected and patented in 1912 by Henry K. Sandell, the Violano-Virtuoso was produced in limited quantities until 1929 and could be found in the very finest restaurants, hotels and oceanliners. In fact, the Violano-Virtuoso was one of the few American-made mechanical musical devices to be distributed worldwide to the most exclusive international clientele.
The below testimonial was sent to the Mills Company by the Governor of Idaho, aptly describing the incredible music produced by the Violano-Virtuoso.
Dear Sir, Have just had the pleasure of listening to your wonderful Automatic Violin and Piano on exhibition at the Government Building here. This marvelous instrument certainly far surpasses anything that I have eve heard in automatic music. The tone and expression of the violin and the piano are so perfect and clear that is really hard to believe but that there is the human hand playing..."
Indeed, for the price of a nickel, the Mills Violano...
Category
20th Century North American Art Deco Musical Instruments
Materials
Wood
Swiss Gold and Enamel Musical Vinaigrette
Located in New Orleans, LA
A musical movement distinguishes this wonderful early 19th-century gold vinaigrette box. The vessel is covered in delicate engraving highlighted by bl...
Category
Antique 19th Century Swiss Neoclassical Decorative Boxes
Materials
Metal
Related Items
Bulgari Italy by Amanda Triossi and Daniela Mascetti Hardcover Book
Located in North Hollywood, CA
Bulgari Book by Amanda Triossi and Daniela Mascetti Hardcover Book.
Bulgari Jewelry Coffee Table Book, Italy.
This is a beautiful coffee table or library book about the history of the iconic Italian luxury jeweler Bvlgari (or Bulgari) Italy.
Book covers Bulgari's history in creating iconic gorgeous jewelry and its connection, globally, to architecture, fashion, entertainment lifestyle.
Contained in a well-made matching publisher decorated slipcase that matches the jacket of the book with archival pictures the book traces the development of the Bulgari style, which has captivated Movie stars and Royalty since its start in Rome in 1884.
Beautiful hardcover table book with full-color plates and excellent history. Rather fascinating for a jewelry buff or collector.
Bulgari is a lavishly illustrated exploration of Italy’s greatest jeweler. New photography and archival pictures trace the development of the Bulgari style, a distinctive look that has captivated royalty, movie stars and others for more than a century. This elegant volume will delight anyone in the fields of fashion and jewelry design as well as the many enthusiastic collectors of Bulgari jewels.Bulgari Book Written by Amanda Trissi and Daniela Mascetti, Abbeville Press Publishers Circa 2007, Like New Condition.
This Large Heavy Book Is Amazing, The Photos are Breathtaking and the Descriptive Information Excels.
Showing Italy's Greatest Jewelers' Style and Distinctive Look, Through The Years.
Not only a feast for the eyes but also a serious scholarly study' - The Spectator
'An opulent foray into the glamorous world of Italy's greatest jeweler' - Daily Telegraph
'Lavishly documents [Bulgari's] opulent and long-established house styles and classic designs' - V&A Magazine
Size: Folio - 13.5" Tall.
Title: Bulgari Publication date: 2007
Binding: Hardcover Gorgeous book.
Printed in Italy. second Edition.
Publisher: Abbeville Press Publishers
255 pages with text in English.
About the Author: Amanda Triossi is a jewelry expert at Sotheby’s.She co-wrote Earrings and The Necklace with Daniela Mascetti. Both titles were published by Thames & Hudson.
Daniela Mascetti is Director of Sotheby’s Jewelry Department and the author of several books on jewelry...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Art Deco Books
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Antique Pump Organ NO50 Chicago Cottage Organ Company
Located in Pasadena, TX
19th Century Eastlake Style Walnut Pump Organ by Chicago Organ Company
Gorgeous elaborately carved antique pump organ made by the Chicago
Organ Co.
Black...
Category
Early 20th Century American Eastlake Musical Instruments
Materials
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Thorens Swiss AD 30 Upright Music Box with Ten Discs, circa 1970
Located in Evergreen, CO
Manufactured by the renowned Thorens Company of Switzerland in the mid-20th century, this delightful music box is comprised of a quality fruitwood case with a glass door that allows ...
Category
Vintage 1970s Swiss Decorative Boxes
Materials
Fruitwood
19th Century Majolica Palissy Tobacco Jar Thomas Sergent
By Thomas Victor Sergent
Located in Austin, TX
Large Majolica Palissy tobacco jar attributed to Thomas Sergent, circa 1880 unsigned.
Naturalistic movement of the end of 19th century.
The jar have the shape of a trunk with a bir...
Category
Antique 1880s French Victorian Snuff Boxes and Tobacco Boxes
Materials
Majolica, Ceramic, Faience
Antique French 19th Century Jewelry Box Flap Door Miniature Wood Cabinet
Located in Firenze, IT
This beautiful French late 19th century chest of drawers in black ebonized wood and cherrywood reproduces with perfect proportions in scale a miniature cabinet with three drawers and an upper flap door that opens to reveal a white marble top and an oval mirror inside, nice hand carved band on top with geometrical pattern and molded base.
The black lacquered wood creates a wonderful contrast with the beautiful honey-colored wood grain. Despite its convenient size, extremely detailed, this chest of drawers is equipped with a white Carrara marble top and a small mirror that make it even more special and useful.
The model of a piece of furniture was originally created by cabinet makers to show their skills to the customer and to present the sample of the furniture which would then have been produced on a larger scale. These commode miniatures, along with other specimens, were displayed in the craftsman's workshop to serve as examples to aid the potential client in making a selection. Some also think that these little chests were used as doll and puppets...
Category
Antique Late 19th Century French Empire Jewelry Boxes
Materials
Carrara Marble, Metal
H 11.03 in W 10.24 in D 6.7 in
Classic Burl Walnut with Inlaid Brass Swiss Music Box
Located in Lambertville, NJ
This beautiful burl walnut music box with elegant brass inlaid top plays four different tunes. The rich sound resonated richly and has the workings made in Switzerland. The on and of...
Category
20th Century Swiss Musical Instruments
Materials
Brass
Vintage Catholic Lourdes Souvenir Building with Music Box, France 1920s
Located in Nuernberg, DE
This vintage silvered Music Box was a souvenir from a pilgrims journey to the famous City of Lourdes in France. It is made of metal and wood. The mu...
Category
Vintage 1920s French Religious Items
Materials
Metal
Miniature 19th Century Victorian Figured Mahogany Chest of Drawers
Located in Morristown, NJ
19th c. Charming antique miniature chest of drawers. The chest has a marble top. The case is figured mahogany, with four stacked drawers, the ...
Category
Antique Mid-19th Century English Late Victorian Models and Miniatures
Materials
Marble, Brass
Art Deco Ashtray Stand, Chrome and Bakelite by Demeyere, Belgium, 1930s
By Demeyere
Located in Bingen am Rhein, RP
Art Deco ashtray stand
This beautiful and rare Art Deco Ashtray Stand from the 20s/30s is in the streamline modern art deco style. The designer of this extraordinary object has succ...
Category
Vintage 1930s Belgian Art Deco Tobacco Accessories
Materials
Chrome, Metal, Iron
H 28.35 in W 18.9 in D 9.26 in
Art Deco Ashtray Stand, brass and Bakelite by Demeyere, Belgium, 1930s
By Demeyere
Located in Bingen am Rhein, RP
Art Deco ashtray stand by Demeyere
This beautiful and rare Art Deco Ashtray Stand from the 30s/40s is in the streamline modern art deco style. The designer of this extraordinary obj...
Category
Vintage 1930s Belgian Art Deco Tobacco Accessories
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Metal, Iron, Chrome
H 29.14 in W 15.75 in D 5.91 in
"Organ Bank" with Cat and Dog, circa 1882, American
By Kyser & Rex Co.
Located in Incline Village, NV
This American cast iron bank known as "Organ Bank" (Cat and Dog), was manufactured by Kyser & Rex Company, Frankford, Pennsylvania in 1882. It conforms exac...
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Antique 1880s American Folk Art Toys
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Iron
Birds a Collection of 25 Bird Figures and Music Boxes
Located in New York, NY
A lifetime collection of birds. A set of 25 some made of porcelain some carved from wood or resin. Of the 25 of them 5 are music boxes.
I actually think it's quite charming.
Siz...
Category
Late 20th Century Animal Sculptures
Materials
Porcelain, Resin, Wood
