Music Box, Made in Switzerland, Late 19th Century

A intricately crafted miniature wooden Eiffel Tower, designed to evoke the elegance of Parisian architecture while serving as a functional weather station. This piece combines fine c...

A fourpart Japanese lacquer Inro. the lacquer is red with motives of a spider with its web in gold and two flying cranes. The lowest part of the inro has a crack on one side.

A fully restored and working Swiss cylinder music box enclosed in a box of polished fruitwood featuring a central floral inlaid medallion on the hinged lid which opens up to reveal ...

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...