Myrtle's cook

Hammer price £1300 + 30% buyer's premium. Either a bargain, or a nightmare, depending what's going on inside and below the surface (as SteveS observes).

A bit late to the game on this one, but here's my mid-C19th EC with 'campaign' corners (as per Stephen Chamber's post above). The maker's label is lost. Ironically it comes with a plain and battered mahogany box, which I suspect is original to the concertina.

That these instruments lie right at the end of Lachenal's production would be supported by the fact that this model first appears in the final price list for the company on Concertina.com, dated by internal evidence to c.1930. Lachenal-Pricelist-All-c1930.pdf (concertina.com)

Not sure if the irate figure in the background is directing his wrath at the bird or the concertina playing/player! Then again, perhaps they are dancing? Australian Rapper sword dancing(?)

Gardiner Holdgate have this rather attractive Anglo in their forthcoming sale. From the serial number I take it to be an early example, the pickup and RH air button perhaps being later additions(?). https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/gardiner-houlgate/catalogue-id-srgard10202/lot-475fd65f-a7ae-407a-94aa-ade800abfb9e (I have no connection with this sale - but thought others might be interested)

That's very helpful, thank you Stephen.

Could I ask for a date for an English Concertina, ebony ends with silver nickel(?) floral insets, 48 glass buttons, 5 fold bellows and steel reeds with internal numbering 12582, please? From preceding number attributions it looks to be mid 1860s(?), any further refinement to this would be of interest. Looking to the 1861 Lachenal catalogue it appears to be a 'model 7' http://www.concertina.com/pricelists/lachenal/Lachenal-Intl-Exhibition-1862.pdf a marque that would later be described as 'Excelsior'. I'm not sure if the reeds on mine are 'standard' or 'tempered', there's some suggestion of the bluing one might expect with tempering, but nothing definitive to my untutored eye. Many thanks, in advance.

There's one that has appeared in his listed stock today (perhaps Des's instrument): https://concertina.co.uk/stock-selection/english-concertinas/wheatstone-48-key-baritone/ Looks rather nice should one have the funds.

I have asked the seller for more details (more photos, dimensions) on the supposed Bass instrument (I'd wondered if this was a New Model F tenor with replacement ends that has been hiding out in a damp cellar?? - but would defer to the bass identification above). My request was posted shortly after it was listed, I haven't had a reply yet - but will happily share should it arrive.

The following duet is being offered for sale by a Cumbria auctioneer (I'm not a party to this sale): https://www.the-saleroom.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/1818-auctioneers/catalogue-id-sr1810458/lot-94ff6842-2284-47b2-8349-acfb00ede64c It looks to be a McCann duet. Some unusual aspects. -Firstly, to state the obvious, it is rectangular in form. Not unknown I realise, and I have a postcard of the Paget trio with six such rectangular instruments, although these appear based on the New Model or Wheatstone equivalent (i.e. raised ends and metal labels). Quite a few earlier rectangular instruments in the Concertina museum etc -Its numbering -57473 - seems to follow the series used for ECs (or perhaps early Anglos??), not the 4 digit serial numbers one usually encounters on Lachenal duets -It has an intriguing inner inscription - a photo of this is shown, and appears to read ' LACHNAL. & Co . MAKERS./[FO]R INVENTOR. J.H. MACCANN_/LONDON_ 1883. PLYMOUTH'. (sic) Some thoughts: As Lachenal is misspelt in the internal inscription one has to wonder if it was really applied by the makers or MacCann himself. As it doesn't use 4 digit Lachenal serial numbers is it a very early duet? The patent was awarded for Maccann's duet in 1884, so 1883 could fit for a prototype - if the inscription is treated literally and we make the link that the date actually applies to the instrument, rather than just being a sort of commentary on the instrument inscribed by an owner If this is the case then isn't 57473 rather later than 1883 (and the patent was awarded for Maccann's duet in 1884 if I recall correctly) or an early duet? If following the EC sequence this would be second decade of C20th (or later?). Or is it part of the Anglo sequence of numbering, which I confess I know little about. What do people think?

The Mayfair range were produced by Wheatstone to a specific price point and in doing so they cut out many of the things that those starting out on concertina were considered unlikely to require. Consequently gone are many of the sharps/flats (the black keys) and some of the (white) higher notes. If you look at a standard treble concertina fingering chart your lowest 'white' note on the right hand side is going to be G3, on the left it's A. The two rows of white buttons on either side will then correspond to a standard fingering chart (e.g. http://www.concertina.com/fingering/images/english48-W842H736.gif) until you run out of buttons where the Mayfair range is truncates the range. You should also be able to use this as points from which to identify which sharps/flats you have got. If you then want to tie in your buttons to musical notation, this should help: https://www.concertina.info/tina.faq/images/finger6.htm Hope this helps!

Hi Tiposx I have a Morse Geordie Tenor that isn't getting played much at the moment that I might consider parting with. PM me if interested. Kind regards

There's a broadly similar 'stretched hexagan' Chidley EC listed on the Concertina Museum site http://concertinamuseum.com/CM00246.htm which also has screwed in reeds. The item on the Barleycorn site is relatively small for a baritone (last picture, next to an Anglo) - I wonder if this is enabled by arranging the reeds along the edges of the box as per the Concertina Museum instrument(?) As Alex suggest, perhaps a prototype? I also notice the Barleycorn instrument is now listed as sold subject to completion.

There is no credible trace of him amongst Liverpool's extant burial records - so if he used that name or was recognised as such at time of death he is probably buried elsewhere. His last known Liverpool addresses suggests he is unlikely to have been buried out of borough (it was in proximity to most of the City's main cemetries) unless he had moved away or died in another place.

Hi Ann Here's a previous Cnet posts that might help...