RARE ORIGINAL PISTON FRENCH HORN BY CHARLES ROTH. Strassbourg, pre 1870, full set of crooks, perfect ! Start Price USD 6,500.00 Current Price USD 6,500.00 Time Left - Bid Count 0 Buy It Now Price - Reserve Price - Start Time Friday, July 18, 2008 End Time Friday, July 25, 2008 Location Wichita, Kansas See more about 'RARE ORIGINAL PISTON FRENCH HORN BY CHARLES ROTH.' Description WICHITA BAND INSTRUMENT COMPANY 2525 EAST DOUGLAS AVENUE WICHITA, KANSAS 67211 TEL: 316-684-0291 FAX: 316-684-6858 Email : wbic@wichitaband.com Service to wind players since 1953! ORIGINAL AND RARE FRENCH HORN, CIRCA 1860 - 1870. Long story on this one… It’s a piston valve horn that’s come to us in nearly pristine original condition. The bell is stamped “Ch. Roth / a / Strasbourg / breveete / S.G.D.G. 1 “. According to William Waterhouse’s “New Langwill Index”, Charles Roth was the successor to Buehner & Keller, the workshop dating from 1844 to 1881. They appear to have enjoyed a good reputation for high-quality brasses and woodwinds. By 1881 the firm had been taken over by J.M. Buerger. A quick review of European history tells us that the horn was indeed built before 1870. We know that the new German Empire, under Wilhelm the First, absorbed all of Alsace in the Franco-Prussian war of 1870. Throughout Alsace and especially in Strassbourg, it was against the law to conduct business in any language other than German. Even the Strassbourg schools were forbidden to hold classes in French. Our horn is stamped with the French spelling “Strasbourg”, not the German “Strassburg”. And the S.G.D.G. letters are the same as our modern “incorporated” notation. If the horn had been made after 1870, the Germans would have insisted on G.m.b.H. (or similar) stamps after the name. As for condition, we can only relate that the horn has been played about five times since it was new. The original brass pistons are still very tight and do not need to be plated. There are no patches or worn spots anywhere on the horn and the very few dings in the instrument have been burnished and balled out in our shop. We also re-soldered the main tuning slide. We believe the box is original and note that it is also in fine condition. Price includes the corpus to the horn, original case, two mouthpieces and ten crooks (nine crooks plus a coupler). Two nickel-silver mouthpieces are with the horn and we also believe them to be the originals. Based on the above, we believe it’s a reasonable assumption that our horn came from Roth’s workshop sometime between 1860 and 1870. NOTE NOTE NOTE. This horn plus another c. 1800 instrument by Courtois neveu (not yet restored) will be on display at the I.H.S. workshop in Denver between July 22 and 26. Of course we’ll also have a large selection of NEW horns by Alexander, Paxman, Holton and Conn. In Denver, you can visit with these horn experts: Philipp Alexander and Raimund Pankratz, from Alexander G.m.b.H., in Mainz. Steve Flower from Paxman Musical Instruments in London. Our Wichita horn expert, Richard Bentson. Our Wichita horn restoration expert, Michael Riepe. Gary Ray, owner of Wichita Band Instrument Company, part owner of Paxman Musical Instruments, Ltd. Hope to see you in Denver! *************************************************** Wichita Band Instrument Company is a small musical instrument emporium located in the center of the USA. We’ve been in business since 1953 and have had the same owner since 1963. Originally we were a repair shop that specialized in wind instrument restoration. Today we have 18 employees including eight of the finest repair technicians in the country. Virtually ALL the items we sell have been fully reconditioned in our own shop, although we do sell a few unrestored historical instruments each year. Wichita Band’s service warranty is the same as it’s been for more than thirty years: "ALL new and all used instruments sold by Wichita Band Instrument Company come with our 24 month service warranty. It’s in addition to any factory guarantees. For two full years, we will repair or replace - whichever in our estimation is the more advisable - pads, corks, springs or other parts required, at no charge to the customer. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance charges. Cases and plating finishes are not covered by our service warranty but are sometimes covered by factory guarantees." Wichita Band’s service warranty does cover dents and dings to your instrument. If your instrument sustains damage to the body, end bow, neck, slides or bell, we’ll burnish out the dents and make it look "like new" again. The cost you is absolutely nothing except for shipping and insurance charges. Wichita Band Instrument Company maintains a repair department capable of restoration work of the highest quality. Even though repairs are essentially "free" for the first two years, after that period has expired, we remain at your service to maintain and repair your musical equipment forever. It’s our "service after the sale" promise and has been since 1953! Anything we sell can be sent to you for a short approval period without obligation. We collect NO SALES TAX, unless you’re lucky enough to live in Kansas. The customer is responsible for shipping and insurance and must pre-pay back to us any freight charges on returned equipment. International shipping is available. Returned items will be refunded within-3 weeks of receiving the item. We’re happy to send any instrument "on approval" for ten days, but ask the prospective buyer to pay shipping both ways and to please reimburse us for posting, re-stock and and clean-up charges (2.95%) on any returned item. VISA/MASTERCARD/DISCOVER/MONEY ORDER/CHECK/WIRE TRANSFER ACCEPTED. Credit cards not accepted from some countries. We must ship to the credit card billing address with exceptions made only at our discretion. We’re happy to correspond with musicians, players, parents and enthusiasts of all types. Written appraisals are always available, but please don’t write or telephone and ask "what’s granny’s baritone sax worth?" Do an Ebay search and you’ll be able to figure it out for yourself. Please note: Some scam artists are now sending fake "Ebay second chance" offers or "Ebay/Paypal invoices" to high bidders and other bidders on closed and active ebay items. If we send you an "Ebay invoice" or "second chance offer" it will be from wbic@wichitaband.com. Please call us on our 800 number (800-835-3006) or (001-316-684-0291 for international buyers) or email us directly at wbic@wichitaband.com, to speak or write to us in person about any auction, and please verify any second chance offers from us. Customers wishing to use US Postal Service: Please be advised that we will be happy to send your item by the US Postal Service if you so desire. However, please be informed that if your item is lost, stolen or damaged in transit, it could take one year or longer to finalize the claim with the US Postal Service. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for lost, stolen or damaged items when shipped with the US Postal Service. Because of this problem, we cannot recommend the US Postal Service for anything other than inexpensive items. Please see our other auctions: Current E-bay auctions. Feel free to call or e-mail for any additional information. Wichita Band Instrument Co. 800-835-3006 payment line (USA and Canada), 316-684-0291 outside the USA and Canada order line, and info line, e-mail: wbic@wichitaband.com. OUR STORE Place a Bid!