Musical snuffbox with segmented comb
Tortoiseshell snuff box with two air musical box movement with a segmented comb. The very earliest music box movements from about 1810-1825 had a series of small sections of teeth rather than one long musical comb. this example has twenty-one combs each with three teeth except for the last treble comb which has two (the third tooth is not missing it is cut neatly off as there are no pins for it to strike - this is common on early boxes). There are therefor sixty-two notes in a total comb length of 54 mm. The musical tone is exquisite - the best I've ever heard from a small movement and each tune plays for over half a minute - astonishing - with highly complex tunes due to the large number of notes available. The case is not perfect but has been expertly repaired. The movement is perfect. 90 mm x 58 mm x 28 mm. circa 1825
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Musical movement showing comb arrangement
Musical snuff box case
Musical snuff box case
Musical snuff box base
Musical snuff box circa 1825
