$1,000
Sold
sold
Description
12" (30 cm.) x 9". The walnut-cased box with fine
burled and inlay wood designs and cast iron
turning handle offers 10 tunes emanating from the
wooden barrel and 20 metal pipes. The simple songs
are heard when the crank is turned and wooden
levers at the side are activated.
Miracourt,France,maker unknown,early 19th
century,the serinette was offered by LaPrevotte of
Marseille,according to its original paper label
which indicates that the firm offered
organs,serinettes and instruments. The ink-script
paper tune label lists the ten tunes. The
serinette,mostly produced in the Miracourt region
of eastern France in the late 18th/early 19th
century,was a source of simple amusement and
entertainment in the home; a painting by
Jean-Batiste Simeon Chardin (1699-1779) depicts a
well-coiffed lady sitting at a table,winding ta
serinette and patiently watching her nearby caged
canary for signs of sound.