Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 8

Interchangable Cylinder Music Box

More From This SellerView All
  • 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

  • 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

  • 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

  • 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

  • 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

  • 19th Century Exhibition Model of Expanding Table by Samuel Hawkins
    By Samuel Hawkins
    Located in New Orleans, LA
    A masterpiece of both cabinetmaking and mechanical engineering, this one-of-a-kind expanding table was crafted by the renowned cabinetmaker Samuel Hawkins of London for the Great Exhibition of 1851. Diminutive in size, the fascinating table was designed as a model to demonstrate Hawkins’ innovative patent screw movement to visitors of the Exhibition – six million people in total over five months. It was exhibited again a century later at the Victoria & Albert Museum during the Festival of Britain, an event intended “to symbolise two main qualities of the national character: realism and strength on the one hand, and, on the other, independence and imagination” (Catalogue of the Exhibition, 1951, p.117). To this day, the miniature masterpiece demonstrates the quest of English furniture makers to combine technical innovation with superb craftsmanship. Displaying exceptional ingenuity, Hawkins’ wind-out screw mechanism allowed one to extend the table’s base to accommodate concentric leaves with the simple crank of a handle. It is based on the inventive expanding table originally designed by Robert Jupe in 1835, which used a swivel mechanism to separate sections of the tabletop and allow for segmented leaves to be inserted. Hawkins’ tabletop, on the other hand, extends outwards directly from the center in order to accommodate additional leaves around its diameter. This unique design allowed the mechanism to also smoothly operate on rectangular tables, which could be wound out from the middle to allow for more table space. Hawkins was not alone in his endeavor to combine the technical merits of engineering and mechanics with the most artful pursuit of cabinetmaking. The first half of the 19th century saw a prolific increase in the popularity of applying new ideas to traditional furniture principles, which allowed furniture to serve many purposes. The resulting “patent” furniture was practical and refined, though few were as innovative as Hawkins’ prodigious design. Carved with the year of the Exhibition on the beautifully designed pedestal base, the table is a testament to the significance of this innovation. The model is mentioned in detail in the catalog of the Great Exhibition of 1851, the first international exhibition of industry, manufacturing, and science. Held at London’s dazzling Crystal Palace, its visitors were treated to exhibits from around the globe, including feats of engineering, innovations in industry, and marvels of design. Queen Victoria herself was a frequent visitor, along with her husband, Prince Albert, and others including Charlotte...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century English Other Tables

    Materials

    Mahogany

You May Also Like
  • Swiss Cylinder Music Box, 19th C
    Located in New York, NY
    Swiss cylinder four-song music box, ca. 1900, the works with model number "6187" and housed within a thuja wood and ebonized pearwood brass-mounted box, the interior lid with a litho...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century American Classical Musical Instruments

    Materials

    Metal

  • Antique Swiss Continental Marquetry Inlay Cylinder Music Box by A.V. Bornard
    Located in Philadelphia, PA
    Antique Swiss Continental marquetry inlay cylinder music box by A.V. Bornard. Item features interior glass cover, 8 songs, beautiful inlay, runs ...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century Swiss Victorian Musical Instruments

    Materials

    Glass, Rosewood, Satinwood

  • Switzerland Mahogany Ebonized Hinged Music Box with Three Cylinders, C. 1880
    Located in Hollywood, SC
    Rare Switzerland mahogany & ebonized hinged music box with the original crank, three interior paper labels, and cylinders. Music box is stamped by maker and is In working condition, ...
    Category

    Antique 1880s Swiss Biedermeier Musical Instruments

    Materials

    Steel

  • Antique Swiss Samuel Troll Fils Key Wind Cylinder Music Box
    Located in Hamilton, Ontario
    Made in Switzerland in approximately 1850, this key wind brass cylinder music box is set in a burled walnut case with an inlaid shield in the top and has a gl...
    Category

    Antique Mid-19th Century Swiss Black Forest Models and Miniatures

    Materials

    Metal

  • 19th Century Swiss Cylinder Carved Music Box on a Table by Mermod Freres
    By Mermod Frères 1
    Located in Guaynabo, PR
    This is a 19th century Swiss cylinder carved music box on a table by Mermod Freres. The maker’s mark is in a silver color shield shaped metal at the righ...
    Category

    Antique 19th Century Swiss Victorian Musical Instruments

    Materials

    Wood

  • English Victorian Inlaid Music Box
    Located in New York, NY
    English Victorian rectangular inlaid music box.  
    Category

    Antique Late 19th Century British Victorian Musical Instruments

Recently Viewed

View All