I am trying to identify a 22-key, 19th century portable barrel organ.  It is unmarked, save for a wax seal on a really big bass pipe.  This pipe is much larger than all the others and it fills the top of the organ!

The wax seal is partially obscured but it says "Storlein", which leads me to the town of that name in Sweden.  It also says "TUL**AMMARE*I" (* = missing letters).  It's an interesting organ in that the case is painted rather than veneered.  It has 3 ranks of wood flue pipes, some very small in scale.

Philip Jamison
West Chester, Pennsylvania
6 Sep 2002 22:59:29 -0400

In the late 1800s, barrel organs were indeed built in Steinkjaer, Norway, by C.H.R. Tharaldsen.  I have seen two of these, one of them in Sweden, one in Norway.  Like in Philip Jamison's description, the Steinkjaer organs I've seen had "ranks of wood flue pipes, some very small in scale" and "a really big bass pipe (which) is much larger than all the others and fills the top of the organ."

Apparently the "mystery organ" was imported to Sweden (perhaps via Storlien) where it got its Customs Office stamp.

Best regards

Christofer Noering
Stockholm
8 Sep 2002 21:56:25 +0200