Lovely Clarion 14 note organ. New York, 1880s.

Original and Beautiful Clariona 14 note organ. This piece was made by inventor Merritt Gally in New York in the mid 1880s. It consists of a quadrangular box in black walnut wood with incised lines that run along the contour as decoration. In the upper part is housed the roll with the various holes strategically placed to sound the melody. By means of a crank located on one side, the mechanism is activated by turning. Its sound is loud and high. Attached on the back is an original sticker with the name of the brand, as well as the dates of the different patents carried out by the brand. Attached is a reel with four tunes that can be listened to from day one and more reels can be obtained from the web page www.musicrolls.com (in English). It is in perfect condition, both the wood of the case and the machinery, which has been cleaned and restored. The history of the so called little organs of table with tabs, equipped with a crank that moved rolls or cards of coded paper, begins with the patent of the Cartonium in 1861 by the Frenchman J. A. Testé of Nantes. This first inventor of this unusual device was followed by numerous inventors in Europe and America who developed similar devices. In the United States, it was another European, the Scotsman John McTammany, who, after numerous tests and studies between 1865 and 1875, patented a small organ, which was not without controversy. Since 1869, similar instruments were already manufactured by the Munroe Organ Reed Company and since 1878 by the Mechanical Orguinette Company and Merritt Gally's company. This type of instrument differed from other similar instruments built in Europe (such as the serinette) in that the crank, instead of moving bellows that expelled air through the reeds or tubes, created a vacuum that made the effect of suction in a harmonica. A magical and original piece for a very demanding collector or for a very special gift.