[falveym]

I recently purchased a John Spencer & Co. piano. The serial number is 15094. I am looking for information on approx. when it was made and other pertinent information. I am also looking for candlelabra's for my piano. They had them on there but have since disappeared. Websites or anything else would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Mary

[Bill Kibby]

Hi! I tuned a similar one the other day, with a number in the 14,000 range. The action was a late example of what is know as a Sticker Action, marked with the name of Brooks Ltd., although some Spencers of the period had better actions: Brooks became a limited company around 1891, so it is after that date: The Musicians' Piano Atlas, for which I wrote the appendix, lists Spencer numbers beginning at 25,000 in 1895, and proceeding at a thousand per year for some time. I have my doubts about these, since the firm was only established in 1883, but I could compile a report based on photos, or I can supply a booklet about the Spencer / Murdoch firms. See "Numbers" & "Datemarks" at
http://www.uk-piano.org/piano-gen/pricelist-of-piano-history.html
_________________
I do not buy, sell or value pianos, but I sometimes rescue pre-1890 pianos in the UK.

My own website: http://www.pianogen.org

Piano History Centre

The World's Largest Collection of
Historical Information about British Pianos.

[Bill Kibby]

Our knowledge of these numbers has increased substantially since this 2003 enquiry, and I would estimate the date of this piano at 1890.
_________________
I do not buy, sell or value pianos, but I sometimes rescue pre-1890 pianos in the UK.

My own website: http://www.pianogen.org

Piano History Centre

The World's Largest Collection of
Historical Information about British Pianos.