Schwechten

[KatrinaF]

Hi there,
I have an old piano and am interested in finding out some more about it and how old it might be.
Inside, it reads: G. Schwechten. Hof Pianoforte - Fabrikant JKH der Frau Prinzssen Carl von Preussen.
There is a serial number which is: 12714.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Katrina

[Bill Kibby]

It is important to realise that dating a piano purely on the basis of a number is not always as simple as it seems, as described at
http://www.pianohistory.info/numbers.html

If this is the only number in the piano, I can't find a date for it. Open the top of the piano and have a good look around for other numbers.

If you could post photos of it here, to show what the whole piano looks like, I may be able to give you some idea of its age.

If you want to search for clues inside the piano, have a look at
http://www.pianohistory.info/datemarks.html

If the piano has any information about the various exhibition medals awarded to Schwechten, these may provide clues, see
http://www.pianohistory.info/exhibition.html