Chappell upright

Shazza · Post by **Shazza** » 27 Jul 2005, 21:48

I have just rescued an old Chappell upright from the dump and would be interested in finding out its age. The only number I can find on it is 14963 which is stamped just inside the lid.
Thanks

tuna · Post by **tuna** » 28 Jul 2005, 00:07

If that is the serial number, it would suggest around 1879.

Shazza · Post by **Shazza** » 28 Jul 2005, 10:03

Yes I thought that too but it seems incredibly old
Is that normal for a Chappell to survive that long?

Post by **Bill Kibby** » 29 Jul 2005, 11:30

Although most people do not have possessions as old as the 1870s, it ios not uncommon for pianos to survive that long, provided they are kept away from radiators. However, there is a question mark over the published numbers for these and many other makes. Robert Bigio very kindly supplied the original stock records of Rudall, Carte & Co. for the period from about 1870 to 1876, and these provide a few serial numbers for Chappell cottage pianos of 1871: One seems low at 6007, the other two are 71733 & 71736 - very much higher than the published numbers.

Post by **Gill the Piano** » 04 Aug 2005, 17:34

You could always take the top door (bit in front of you when sitting at piano) and fall (lid) and any other rail off, lift out the end key in the bass, and see if there's a date scribbled on it anywhere. Or there may be a label underneath the key on the key bed (if it is 1879, brace yourself for a lovely bit of antique filth...). Perhaps you could try the top key, if no luck, then middle C or the A's either side. Or sometimes there's a tuning date on the tops of the keys or the action - but of course these will only give tuning dates, not of manufacture.

Post by **Bill Kibby** » 05 Aug 2005, 09:43

There are problems with the published dates of Chappell numbers. Robert Bigio very kindly supplied the original stock records of Rudall, Carte & Co. for the period from about 1870 to 1876, and these provide a few serial numbers for Chappell cottage pianos of 1871: One seems low at 6007, the other two are 71733 & 71736 - very much higher than the published numbers. According to the published numbers,6007 would be 1860, and the other two would be around 1926! A Chappell Yacht piano, secondhand in 1916, has the number 80455, which, again, does not correspond to the published dates.