Lachenal Dates ( again...)

[varney]

I recall that there was some dispute in various past threads over the accuracy of the dating methods for Lachenal concertinas. I'm not sure where things stand with this at present, so can anybody point me to a listing which is reasonably reliable for dating an anglo numbered 175273?

 

thanks,

Michael.

[wes williams]

1904-1918.

The listing is here , from 2006, but if Dowright has done any more recent research, he might chip in.

[varney]

Thanks Wes, I think I checked it before and reckoned it to be in the early 1890s. A nice instrument all the same.

 

Michael.

[Dowright]

My estimate of the year of manufacture generally agrees with Wes William's estimation.

 

My database includes the following:

No. 162849, 20-key; Original bill of sale from 1898. (Caution: Bill of sale per se is no guarantee for dating, since it may be for a used instrument.)

No 176211. 30 key; repaired by G&H Wood, 1911. (Note: I have found that the first repair/retuning of an instrument is often in the range of 5-10 years after purchase, although earlier may be in order for a newer instrument that has a particular "glich.")

No. 169404, 20 key; "T. Walpole, Liverpool, July 24, 1903". This could be handwriting from the time when the original purchase was made. (Caution: However, most of the handwritten inscriptions inside concertinas seem to be from later, particulalrly, at the time of the first repair/retuning.)

 

Putting this information together, my best "point estimate" for the manufacture/sale of your No. 175273 is circa 1906.

Edited November 13, 2011 by Dowright