Old brass phone

Welcome to the forum. At the moment I haven't any real help in dating this phone. I found some with similar mouth and ear pieces on ornate bases. For example, this one the seller is calling a "Marharaja" phone. No date is even suggested.
http://orpheus.en.ec21.com/ORNATE_BRASS_MAHARAJA_TABLE_PHONE--85886_87042.html

The same website has another one with similar ear and mouth pieces but not an ornate base that are call replicas. Nowwww I want to emphasis that I know nothing about dating phone.
http://orpheus.en.ec21.com/CLASSY_1944_CHICAGO_RADIO_CO.--85886_87041.html

Pinterest has a whole page of ornate phones with identical ear mouth hand piece. Many people have trouble access Pinterest pages so not only am I giving the link to the ornate phone page, but also to a couple of individual phones and Google search image page of ornate phones.
Need to scroll around the page to find the identical hand pieces. None seem to have the same base as yours.
https://www.pinterest.com/kathydove79/antique-telephones/

Images of a few of them:
This one was original on eBay. The auction doesn't have the pics up anylonger.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/27/81/43/278143d63a2f3773df977e693566a846.jpg

Here's the auction for it. Note the seller had more than one.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/24K-Gold-Plated-Vintage-Phones-Antique-Fashion-Telephone-Pastoral-Deco-Phone-/330630922984?nma=true&si=%2F7vKWUJ4932E4vXXCHDoX1Wv%2F3I%3D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Another:
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/564x/3f/a7/80/3fa780f995dbc3744ded2e67e902a7f3.jpg

Google images of ornate telephones:
https://www.google.com/search?q=orn...biw=1024&bih=579#tbm=isch&q=ornate+telephones

--- Susan

 

Thanks Susan.

Unfortunately, as you have also just experienced, although there are many examples of older brass phones, the fact that I have yet to find even a remotely similar example, especially in it's dimensions, has led me to try this forum.

I am hoping that once I have it in hand, I will be able to find more clues to pursue as to it's identity and origin.

I think it is worthy of rolling the dice on it, having an asking price of only 120 bucks.

 

I can't see any signs of age. When u get it look underneath, phones were regulated in most places and you should find a plate or sticker with maker and technical data. It is so gaudy and newish I'd examine it all over keeping in mind that there are repros and probably fantasy phones out there.

 

Right on with the gaudy.

Supposedly, it's been in the sellers family for a very long time, but you can never put too much value on such comments when dealing with completely unknown sellers.

I will certainly follow up with you guys if and when I get it in my hands.

 

My thought is that it is not as old as it is made out to be. It is in the European style from the 20s-30s but more embellished. Probably a 60s-70s decorator phone.

 

I totally agree, but would put the date later.
1970s-80s.

 

Was thinking it would be push-button if later.

 

Is it primarily the embellishment that is tingling both of your spidey senses, as it may tend to be a little "too much" for the majority of original piece's from the 20's-30's??

Any other characteristics considered non-supportive of a true pre-40's piece?

 

80s is kind of borderline isn't it? And this was meant to replicate an earlier era.

Of course I could be totally wrong. Have been in the past, could be again.

 

Not sure what you mean by spidey senses.

White cord, and the white parts are probably plastic.


Brad -
The other thing is when was the phone company phones deregulated so we could buy them as decorator pieces. Wasn't that the late 70s, early 80s?

 

Come on...Spidey senses.....as in SpiderMan.

Intuition.....ESP....something "not right" felling.....often indicated by a tingling sensation to the Webbed-Wonder?

If not plastic, an original period item would be what?

Porcelain/ceramic?

 

Come on . . . . you're on an antiquer's board.
Some of us (me first) still tend to be a little square and proper.

BTW - I looked up deregulation. Took place in 1984. We couldn't even own our own phones prior to that. They were supplied by the phone company.

So if your phone is a reproduction, 1980s or later decorator style.

 

Did you consider it offensive?

What material would those pieces likely be if not plastic?

 

Some people might think having something for 30 years was a very long time, but that's about how old this phone is. I remember such things being moderately popular decorator items during a period of rather lurid public taste in the late 70s.

It will not have carbon granule microphone and speaker, extremely low fidelity sounds, and it will be wired to use with a mosern phone line.

The only advantage to being old is that you remember stuff from the first time around.

 

What do the guts look like anyway? You probably don't know or won't until you buy it, if you do. Maybe then this could be resolved.

 

But people did have other phones. Their primary phone may have been supplied by the phone Co. but people did have decorator phones such as this. Could very well be post-80s but most people did not want dial phones by then.

 

Welcome,I am an old timer but MIA as of late

 

Note that the brass column/rod connecting the cradle to the base on yours seems to missing a cover/collar as found on other similar replica phones. The ornate square on the top of that column appears identical to many found on replica ornate phones.

Yours may not be as late as the 1970s/80s, but possibly from the 1940s/50s???

Rotary dial phones were not common with the Bell System until around 1919 and was being phased out by the 1960s by push buttons.

--- Susan

 

Welcome back SOS, you were missed!

--- Susan

 

Thank you so much Susan I missed everyone here. Now I think I will trry to get a nap. I have been up most nights and have been napping through the day.HUGS to all.