Miniature Wheatstone English on ebay

[Alex West]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Miniature-Midget-Wheatstone-English-Concertina-1927-/350371363604?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_MusicalInstr_Keyboard_RL&hash=item5193c2bb14

 

I'm slightly surprised no-one seems to have picked up on this.

 

Price seems high but it might appeal to someone given the heritage and provenance

 

Alex West

[jdms]

Now there's something you don't see every day--not only is it a miniature, it's a miniature midget.

 

Ah, EBay...

 

jdms

[SteveS]

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Miniature-Midget-Wheatstone-English-Concertina-1927-/350371363604?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_MusicalInstr_Keyboard_RL&hash=item5193c2bb14

 

I'm slightly surprised no-one seems to have picked up on this.

 

Price seems high but it might appeal to someone given the heritage and provenance

 

Alex West

I recall seeing it being sold at auction a couple of months ago, and for a lot less than the asking price.

I thought then it went for too much money though.

[Dowright]

No taker for the Wheatstone miniature. There should be no surprise, slight or otherwise. It is obviously the price. If it were $3500 instead of GBP3500, the seller might have had a chance at a buyer. The value of provenance has its limit.

Not so long ago, I acquired the 12-key English Wheatstone miniature purchased in 1911 by Sam Aukland, with his name and the year inscribed in the metal fretwork. Sam and daughter Betty Aukland (and, for a time, along with "Little Tweet", the canary), of course, were pretty well-known performers. The instrument is unusual in that it has raised ends. And it is unique in that it was the concertina that Betty (born Beatrice) first learned to play, given that she was very young and her fingers were too small to learn on a full-size instrument.

 

I paid little more than one half of the asking price of the miniature in question.

 

But, of course, it only takes one bidder with a big bag of money and a real strong desire for Alfred Worsley's miniature to pay well over the "reasonable" market price. Therefore, I cannot fault the Ebay seller for trying.

[david_boveri]

No taker for the Wheatstone miniature. There should be no surprise, slight or otherwise. It is obviously the price. If it were $3500 instead of GBP3500, the seller might have had a chance at a buyer. The value of provenance has its limit.

Not so long ago, I acquired the 12-key English Wheatstone miniature purchased in 1911 by Sam Aukland, with his name and the year inscribed in the metal fretwork. Sam and daughter Betty Aukland (and, for a time, along with "Little Tweet", the canary), of course, were pretty well-known performers. The instrument is unusual in that it has raised ends. And it is unique in that it was the concertina that Betty (born Beatrice) first learned to play, given that she was very young and her fingers were too small to learn on a full-size instrument.

 

I paid little more than one half of the asking price of the miniature in question.

 

But, of course, it only takes one bidder with a big bag of money and a real strong desire for Alfred Worsley's miniature to pay well over the "reasonable" market price. Therefore, I cannot fault the Ebay seller for trying.

 

hmm... i recall playing that same instrument. who did you buy it from? i was not aware it had been sold. pm is ok if you'd prefer. i don't doubt you, i'm wondering if there is more than one miniature with that story on it (or if the one i played was erroneous), or if it merely had been sold (and not offered to me!).

[Dowright]

David.

It is the one you played at Noel Hill Irish Concertina School, 2008. You shouldn't doubt you ole friend and whistle student. Dowright--that's me, Randy! Incidentally, it is pronounced "Do - Wright," not "Dow - Right", and my motto is "If it's right, it's Dowright."

Edited July 16, 2010 by Dowright

[david_boveri]

hahaha, i had no idea! good to see that you didn't steal anything from my friend, and also good to see that you aren't a liar (either one of the "yous").

[Ron Wilson]

The miniature midget is back on ebay today with a (slightly) lower price. GBP2,950

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/Miniature-Midget-Wheatstone-English-Concertina-1927-/250673238987?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_MusicalInstr_Keyboard_RL&hash=item3a5d4a13cb

[cnrobinson]

That still seems a mighty high price for something that is, in effect, merely a curio.

[conzertino]

It still didn't sell...

[conzertino]

Here she comes again - this time for auction!

Edited August 10, 2010 by conzertino

[conzertino]

Sold for 2.250 Sterling... Not bad!?!