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http://www.kjonline.com/news/Maine_auct ... group.html

Numerous gross inaccuracies in the article aside, are these anywhere near as rare or valuable as the auctioneer would like to believe?

Cylinders such as those are as rare as the article would like you to believe. And sought after.

25,000 still seems very high, though. Maybe a half of that is more realistic?

I have that 1893 cylinder of the Unique Quartette singing that song on a CD. So it's not like it doesn't circulate in some form.

This is certainly the very same cylinder that was published on a CD for the book "Lost sounds: Blacks and the birth of the recording industry, 1890 - 1919" by Tim Brooks.

In 2004 the Thomas Edison Attic radio program on WFMU had a special theme show where this cylinder was also played: http://www.wfmu.org/playlists/shows/11752

Apparently the original owner must have decided to let go of this cylinder.

The quote in that article "The cylinders are made from pressed, hardened wax and grow brittle and chipped with age" shows certainly a lack of basic knowledge about wax cylinders. I haven't seen any wax cylinder to be pressed nor have I seen a any cylinder record "growing chipped" with age.

The spoken introduction is "... as sung by the celebrated Unique Quartet." Am I wrong, or could this mean that Edison's studio artists recorded the title?

Notice how the appraiser's name wasn't given, don't want to look the fool when it sells for 4% estimated price.

Sold for $1100.

http://forum.talkingmachine.info/viewto ... =3&t=14916