Wheatstone English Ebony Treble

[Zarty]

 

I have owned the above 56 key Wheatstone English Ebony Treble for between 15 and 18 years and it's in excellent condition - much better than it looks in the photo. I am not a regular player and I've taken the decision to sell it. However, I am having difficulty putting an age to it. I bought it from Chris Algar but as I've lost the stock number and I can't even remember the exact year I bought it, Chris tells me that he probably won't be able to find the sales record. The serial number is a bit hard to read. I thought it was 25502 but this doesn't seem to correspond with the record I found in the Wheatstone ledgers. Any suggestions for getting a history/age on this concerntina? Would anyone have any idea about a realistic selling price range for a concerntina like this?

 

Zarty

[PeterT]

Any suggestions for getting a history/age on this concerntina? Would anyone have any idea about a realistic selling price range for a concerntina like this?

Hi Zarty,

 

In terms of price, a dealer (such as Chris Algar) would be asking £2500 for one in top condition. For a private sale, I would guess that £1800/2000 would be reasonable.

 

In terms of dating/serial number, if you unscrew the ends of the instrument, you might well find the serial number stamped internally. My feeling is that the date is somewhat later than the serial number which you have indicated, as the Wheatstone badge looks to be the wrong shape.

 

Regards,

Peter.

[Stephen Chambers]

Any suggestions for getting a history/age on this concerntina?

In terms of dating/serial number, if you unscrew the ends of the instrument, you might well find the serial number stamped internally. My feeling is that the date is somewhat later than the serial number which you have indicated, as the Wheatstone badge looks to be the wrong shape.

I'd think it was earlier, both from the style of the fretwork and that the instrument appears to have had paper labels, set into oval cutouts, in the old style seen on early Æolas. Unfortunately these older instruments often had the serial number only on the paper label, so if it is missing then the number is lost.

[Theo]

I'd think it was earlier, both from the style of the fretwork and that the instrument appears to have had paper labels, set into oval cutouts, in the old style seen on early Æolas. Unfortunately these older instruments often had the serial number only on the paper label, so if it is missing then the number is lost.

There is a similar, though 48 key version, here It has cutouts for the paper labels, but the labels are missing. There are no serial numbers on the reedpans, or the bellows ends, but the number 23117 is printed on the inside of one end. The printing is smaller than that usually found on reedpans and bellows, and is in black ink on darkish wood so not immediately obvious.

 

Wheatstone 23117 is in the "missing ledgers" period prior to 1900, so this is consistent with Stephens suggestion that this is an early style Aeola.