The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hello all,

I found this antique disc record cabinet in Arkansas recently, and it just arrived last night. It appears strikingly similar to the Vernis Martin cabinets made by Victor. Does anyone have who idea what company might have made this cabinet? There are no markings, save for some random stamped numbers in the wood on the doors (76, 410) and a patent date on the door latch of 1899. The doors open with the push of a side lever (no knobs). I'm sorry the photos aren't better; even with the "touch-up" on the right side, it still looks really nice. Additionally, does anyone have an idea of value for insurance purposes?

Garret, I can't comment on value as you know how hard "that" is to determine. However, regarding the cabinet.....my "guess" would be "possibly" made by Douglas...??. You may want to look in your copy of LFD page 133. At least in my copy... . I have always found VM quite garish. However, many don't. Nice find.... .

Hi Garret,
Nice cabinet-just so you know the gold on this unit is from bronzing powder-and it comes in many colors. I have 26 shades of gold 9 in silver and 11 in bronze and I still do not have them all. It is ground up leaf and is mixed with varnish and either brushed on or sprayed and has been around for thousands of years. It is then top coated with varnish. The problem with touch up is matching the colors as they change with age.
Prior to spray equipment it took someone with years of experience to do a large surface item-but from the time frame of your unit it would have been sprayed on. The art work was done by someone else so it was always a multi person object.
Abe

Very interesting!

I wonder if this was made to be extra storage for a floor model; if it were meant to support a table machine, the painted flowers on the top would have been superfluous…

Bill

The needle cups on the inside of the door would suggest that an external horn machine (or at least a cupless internal horn model) would have sat upon the cabinet. Perhaps the elusive Vernis Martin VV-VI? Lol!

JohnM wrote:The needle cups on the inside of the door would suggest that an external horn machine (or at least a cupless internal horn model) would have sat upon the cabinet. Perhaps the elusive Vernis Martin VV-VI? Lol!

There are actually four small depressions in the top of the varnish of the cabinet from rubber bumpers that line up in a square. A machine definitely sat on top of this cabinet (my Triumph left small depressions exactly like it on my cylinder cabinet), but a long before I found it.

It's just a really, really unusual cabinet. Another one of these actually turned up in southeast Arkansas about six months before this one, although that one had paint missing from an entire side. This has some serious paint wear to one of the sides, but most of the paint/varnish/"bronze" is definitely original.

Nobody else has any thoughts on a possible maker?

Garrett, Kurk Nauck had a columbia machine with a matching cabinet just like yours. Both the machine and the cabinet had the paintings etc. I had a photo but can't find it. I checked his website but didn't see it there.

Moooperator wrote:Garret, Kurk Nauck had a columbia machine with a matching cabinet just like yours. Both the machine and the cabinet had the paintings etc. I had a photo but can't find it. I checked his website but didn't see it there.

Jeff,

Thank you for the heads-up! That would be a real surprise if it's a Columbia cabinet. I messaged Kurt, and hopefully will hear something, as it would be great to have a fuller history of this piece as I consider how to proceed with restoration.

Garret wrote:

Moooperator wrote:Garret, Kurk Nauck had a columbia machine with a matching cabinet just like yours. Both the machine and the cabinet had the paintings etc. I had a photo but can't find it. I checked his website but didn't see it there.

Jeff,

Thank you for the heads-up! That would be a real surprise if it's a Columbia cabinet. I messaged Kurt, and hopefully will hear something, as it would be great to have a fuller history of this piece as I consider how to proceed with restoration.

All "Columbia cabinets" were manufactured by Hawthorne & Sheble as far as I can determine, but this Vernis-Martin example doesn't conform to others I've seen except for those sold by Douglas in New York City. Keep in mind that private professional decorators could and did decorate standard talking machine cabinets and record cabinets to order, and that's probably the case here.

George P.

The machine I had was a Victor D.

Ages ago I had a similar machine with the phonograph built into the cabinet. I think it had an M mech and a brass bell Victor horn. I bought it from Wendell Moore and sold it to the president of Pennzoil.

By the way, I'm list tons of stuff on eBay right now, including some fairly rare items.

Go to http://www.ebay.com/sch/nauck3/m.html?_ ... =12&_rdc=1

Regards,

Kurt
www.78rpm.com