Concertina and case made by Wheatstone
Object No. H6718
Concertina, case and cover, 48 key, wood / leather / brass / bone, Wheatstone and Co, London, England, 1850-1900
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Summary
Physical Description
(Part 1) Concertina, English type, 48 keys, portable, free-reed instrument consisting of green leather bellows device fastened between two hexagonal, polished wood end casings, each containing a small button keyboard of 24 keys. Decorative fretwork borders are carved into the wood around the keyboard panels. Towards the bottom of each end casing a green leather strap is a attached, and fastened with a brass buckle, forming a thumb-loop for supporting the instrument. A small oval shaped, paper label recessed into the fretwork on the right hand side, reads: "By Her Majesty's Letters Patent Wheatstone Inventor Conduit St Regents London". Th keyboards are arranged according to the Wheatstone button key system, there are four rows of keys for each hand, the outside rows, featuring brown wooden pegs are the accidentals, and the two inside rows of bone pegs, represent the C scale and have the letters of the scale engraved on their heads. The 'C' pegs are stained red. Together the two keyboards make up the full chromatic scale, covering four octaves. (Part 2) Case, hexagonal box of polished wood, with a brass lock fitting, fully removable cover (Part 3) (Part 3) Cover, for case, polished wood, lined with maroon velvet (faded). leather strap handle from top is broken off.
DIMENSIONS
Height
165 mm
Width
210 mm
Depth
190 mm
PRODUCTION
Notes
Charles Wheatstone, a scientist, invented the English concertina by adapting the 'Wheatstone button key system' (as used on Wheatstone's "symphonium" patented in 1825) to a bellows-blown instrument. The Wheatstone concertina was patented in 1844 and was very popular during the second half of the 19th Century. Instrument type patented in 1844, and popular until turn of the century. Inscription indicates that was made during reign of Queen Victoria.
SOURCE
Credit Line
Gift of Harkness, D, 1960
Acquisition Date
19 July 1960
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