Antique of the Week: Swiss Music Box

As everyone in Kensington knows, Antique Row is one of the community’s points of pride.  Howard Avenue and its side streets are lined with shops specializing in antique furniture, rugs, vintage toys, used books and more.  This large presence in the community sparked our feature, Antique of the Week, where we will showcase a different item or curiosity each week to bring attention to pieces from the past.

This week, we’re featuring a Swiss music box from the 1880s, just a few years after Thomas Edison’s invention of the phonograph, according to Reuge.

The first music box was created in Sainte Croix, Switzerland, in 1811, and it quickly became a hot commodity, representing 10 percent of Switzerland’s export industry, Reuge says. Then, in 1870, a German inventor created a music box with discs similar to the ones available in this music box, thereby allowing the listener to change songs.  

This music box comes with at least eight records, both in German and French, including favorites such as “The Blue Danube,” “The Good Life,” and “Mon Homme.” Hareth Jasim, the owner of , said that the music box still works. Just turn the handle on the side, sit back and listen to music from the past.

Its dimensions are 13 inches wide, 8 inches deep, and 7.5 inches high. It is available at at 3758 Howard Avenue. Jasim can be reached at 240-264-7274.