Brinsmead & Sons key materials

[Tarotaro]

Hello,
I have been trying to find out what material these keys are made out of. The piano is a John Brinsmead & Sons, date unknown (and alas, I don't have friendly access to it to get the serial number).

I had an unusual experience playing it - a key lip crumbled under my fingers (leaving a nice semi-circle of dust on the edge of the piano - I only noticed it once, but it seems to have occured a number of times). As you can see in the photo, black keys are also falling off.

I have had a very old piano tuner tell me that "piano keys are designed not to be sturdy and made of materials that don't 'crumble' under flesh" - and yet this is what I experienced. Internet searches so far have proven fruitless , so I am pleased to have found this forum.

Any help either identifying the material or explaining the crumbling would be greatly appreciated. Note the piano has not been looked after, and the room (where it has been for a number of years) has widely varying temperatures and humidity, and significant evening sun exposure.

[Barrie Heaton]

They will be Celulose. They tend to go brittle with age.


Barrie

[Tarotaro]

Hello Barrie,

Thank you for the quick reply. I've attached here another photo of the piano - is it possible tell its general age (to within, say, a decade) from the style/features?

I have a number of JB&S samples available to me(from 1880-1960), and I've owned a 1910, but I can't seem to place it.

I'm wondering if clues lie in the top of the piano, the style of the legs, or the fold-out sheet rack or even the presence of the name plaque (which seems to be uncommon). The internal pedal mechanism is slightly different to my 1910, though I admit that's not much help.

Edit: I have found an almost identical one (slight difference in trim at front bottom of keyboard) that is claimed 1892 - then I noticed the 1930 upright Barrie restored in 1989. Was this style manufactured over a large range of years?