Working Antique Hotel Reception Desk Call Bell, Bronze on Marble Base, Victorian for Sale

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Working Antique Hotel Reception Desk Call Bell, Bronze on Marble Base, Victorian For Sale

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Working Antique Hotel Reception Desk Call Bell, Bronze on Marble Base, Victorian:
$72.00

This is an old one, late 19th century, say the 1880s, and it\'s a hotel model, made of bronze on a whitish stone base that I think is marble but may be alabaster. A pretty Victorian lyre design, it still rings clear and true. See measurements below.

Height: 5 1/4\"
Width of base: 3\"
Depth: 3\"
Weight: 1 lb, 3 oz. (it\'s surprisingly heavy for its size)
Bell diameter: 3\"
Marks: none apparent
Age: c. 1880s - 1890s
Condition: functions well but a bit worn (tarnished, leans slightly left, small chips to the stone base)

A charming little thing in good working condition, it makes a clear yet friendly \'ding!\' sound. It\'s an original one, rather than one of the many reproductions you see around these days, and it does have wear, but its honest wear from a long life of service in some American hotel. (I\'ve thought it might be from the Hotel Dennis in Atlantic City, since we found a 1920 silverplate creamer from there stored in the same box, but that\'s speculation.) It has a slight tilt from certain angles, presumably from decades of use and even the occasional impatient and/or heavy-handed patron smacking it, but it\'s slight. The bell has held up better than the stone base, which has assorted small smudges, nicks and chips, though it\'s stable and might be improved by a good scrubbing. (I think you were supposed to use sand and something else to clean white marble, was it borax? I haven\'t tried as I\'m unsure that this is white marble, and not some form of alabaster, thus I leave cleaning to your discretion.)

It\'s definitely bronze and the tone is true and pleasing, which I think is down to the alloy. (Bell metal was a term once, and it meant this, a kind of bronze with higher tin to copper ratio than bronzes made for other purposes, meant for making more resonant bells.) I think the lyre harp shaped support may be bronze too, somewhat darkened and reddish now, but I\'m not sure, though it is non-magnetic. The striker is an odd shape, sort of a lobed pendant on a hinge, which hangs between the curlicues of the stalk and also seems to be bell metal. I don\'t see any patent information on this one, though when I have it\'s always a date in 1863, which I think was the origin of this particular standing countertop lyre or \'yoke on stalk\' design.

I also went looking around for period images of call or service bells for comparison --see photo 5-- and there are some interesting old ads and catalog pages on right now (\"call bell ad\" brings them up). It seems this particular design was around throughout the late 19th century, appearing in a variety of manufacturer\'s catalogs, but by the 1890s - 1910s most of them were plated (either silver or nickel), though this one never was and I suspect it\'s slightly earlier than that. The bell diameter seemed to stay roughly the same, though, a typical 3\" (they called it the gong back then), which this one is.

Also interesting to me, apparently by 1907 this particular lyre harp on pedestal design was being marketed specifically for use as a hotel reception desk bell (photo 5, top right), as distinct from other styles of desk bell. By then it even came in various sizes, presumably based on the scale of the hotel. Unfortunately none of the old catalogs ever seemed to specify any height measurements, so it\'s hard to know what was considered standard, \"medium hotel,\" or \"extra-large hotel.\" But it does make clear that this particular design had become firmly associated with hotel reception desks by then, maybe because it\'s a bit more formal looking than the earlier types (both the hanging bells usually seen attached to the door of a small shop or inn, and the flush desktop versions), elevated on a stone pedestal for grandeur? It\'s also louder and a bit piercing, loud enough to call staff at some distance, which was presumably necessary in larger establishments. It makes you think of the term bellhop, a boy who was expected to hop at the sound of a bell...and possibly this bell, long ago.

Anyway, it\'s an interesting thing, and still fully functional, though again, it could do with a proper cleaning.

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