Ghost in the machine? (a Columbia 9000)

[epigramophone]

I guess you can see anything in anything if you look hard enough - Jesus or the Mona Lisa? You choose

Nah, it's clearly the Sphinx.

Not many people know this, but buried beneath the Sphinx is a giant Armstrong Siddeley. They just haven't found it yet .

[nostalgia]

So far, Soundgen seems to be the only one with a good explanation of this mark, a quality control mark. Does someone know anything more about these marks? It is really a peculiar mark, and since it obviously are different ways to decipher the letters/numbers ( if it is meant to be numbers and letters), it could be interesting to know more about it. Myself, I have not yet seen this mark, (or similar marks) on any other (later) HMV motor, so I have nothing to compare with, really.
I am happy I was not too much affected by the fumes of the Swarfega hand cleaner and the Comma Moly grease though, even if I admit getting kind of addicted to their smells:;)

[Frisco The Beagle]

Listen to a few records spun backwards on it and see if you hear hear the devil.

[JerryVan]

I guess you can see anything in anything if you look hard enough - Jesus or the Mona Lisa? You choose

Tiny Tim

[phonosandradios]

I guess you can see anything in anything if you look hard enough - Jesus or the Mona Lisa? You choose

Tiny Tim

The more I look the more I can see Cher

[epigramophone]

I also see OV...and 1071, but when viewing from different angles or at a distance, clearly visible animal and "human" faces also appear to me, sometimes partly covered by the black parts, but still quite easily recognizable, in addition to peculiar shadow/light effects. Maybe not exactly ominous, but for sure weird ( at least to me), since no one apparently has opened this motor since the gramophone was manufactured
I will not remove the splash/spot/mark when servicing the motor, when I continue servicing it today. Whatever force/coincidence (meaningful or not)/synchronicity put it there, I will not disturb it, but leave it in peace.
Photo uploaded of faces I found buried in the splash. One face is more visible when being watched from a distance, like the green circled face, " the face of the snake/worm" which tail ends under the number 71.
Maybe it is on time I take a break from gramophone repairs..

On removing the motor board from a recently acquired HMV102D, this what I found :

[nostalgia]

This is fascinating stuff. The same initials...OV, and a different number. On this mark, OV is however more clearly seen than on the mark on my Columbia 9000.
Maybe this OV was working at Hayes, and was involved with quality control, and had fun of making different marks on the motors he inspected?
Who knows,,,but still fastinating, for sure.

[bikesteve]

I frequently see a spot of red or yellow paint on the top of these motors, often wondered if it's a mark left by someone who's serviced the motor??