The music is recorded on a cylinder with pins. The interior is divided into three compartments: the first contains the crank and the mechanism that operates the cylinder with pins, the second - the cylinder with pins and vibrating lamellae, and the third - two levers for starting and stopping the melody. The cylinder holds seven melodies by W.A. Mozart, which are played through the vibration of steel teeth arranged in a comb, whose tips are adjacent to the cylinder. The lid of the box features floral marquetry on its outer surface. This cultural asset is classified under the "Tezaur" category.
The Story of Musical Boxes
Musical boxes originated in Switzerland at the end of the 18th century. In 1796, watchmaker Antoine Favre-Salomon invented a pocket watch with an incorporated musical mechanism, using the principle of tuned metal lamellae. The invention quickly spread, soon leading to the creation of musical boxes independent of watches.
Initially invented and built for the salon entertainment of the aristocracy, musical boxes quickly evolved, capturing the market and public interest with these entertainment machines. The musical box industry was predominantly centered in Switzerland. Geneva remains the cradle of the musical box, even though the art of crafting these musical wonders spread to other regions of Switzerland - such as Jura, Auberson, and Sainte Croix - and later to other countries, including France, Germany, and Czechoslovakia. Some of the most notable manufacturers of musical boxes include: Mermod Frères, Paillard, Reuge, Thorens, Cuendet, Junod, Nicole Frères, Ducommun-Girod, Brémond, and L'Epee.
The musical box operated on a relatively simple principle: a cylinder with pins (cylindrical pins) would, through rotation, actuate a metal "comb" tuned to specific musical notes, both being concealed from view in one of the box's compartments. By turning the cylinder - with the help of a spring mechanism (similar to that of watches) - the pins would strike the steel "teeth" of the comb, causing them to vibrate and produce different musical notes. A musical box could have a limited number of melodies "programmed" onto the cylinder - from 4 to 12.
Over time, the cylinders were replaced with interchangeable metal discs. Based on this operating principle, large musical boxes emerged in cafés and taverns, which could be activated by inserting a coin, allowing users to select their preferred disc.
Besides the ingenious mechanism, musical boxes also stood out for the artistry of their exterior decorations, featuring materials such as precious woods, mother-of-pearl, ivory, and metal.
The decline of musical boxes began with the invention of the phonograph (1877) and the gramophone (1887). Production continued for a while, but by the early 20th century, most renowned companies had abandoned the business and started manufacturing other mechanical musical instruments.
A drugstore of old times Chișinău (end of 19th – beginning of 20th centuries)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IV [XIX], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
The research and valorization of the collection of postcards from the heritage of the National Museum of Archaeology and History of Moldova suggests new themes and subjects from the history of 19th - beginning of 20th century Bessarabia. The investigations from archives and the press of the time, the blanched images, with documentary support, are becoming an informative source charged with authenticity.
As starting point of the article served a heritage postcard dated with the beginning of 20th century, „baptized” by postcards lovers „Pautânschi’s drugstore”. It is a white and black picture postcard, issued in Moscow at the renowned publishing house Şerer, Nabgolț & K, in circulation from 1912. It represents the image of a skittish building, placed on Armenească str. Corner with Alexandrovskaia (today bd. Ştefan cel Mare and și Sfânt corner with Armenească str., near the specialized store „Franzeluța”). It is a baroque building, built in 1894 which belonged to Maximilian Pautânschi, a prosperous businessman from Basarabia, based in Chișinău in 1851. The drugstore is rented starting with 1899 by Osip Babici at an annual price of 2500 rubles, and from 1917 Şimșon Kogan becomes the owner of the drugstore, one of the holder of a drugstore network from the region.
Maximilian Pautânschi’s entrepreneur activity in pharmaceutics had been continued by one of his sons, Mihail, well-known scientist of winery, who had owned a private drugstore (1907-1910) and the daughter Constanța-Regina, who in 1901, with the financial support of her father, acquires a drugstore on Haralampievsk street corner with Pavlovsk (today Alexandru cel Bun street corner Petru Rareș).
Ana Grițco
Constantin F. Cazimir’s activity within the Bessarabian zemstva
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IV [XIX], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Ana Grițco
The Great War. Photographic documents (The exhibition dedicated to the centenary of the First World War
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IX [XXIV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2015
Ana Grițco
Building of the Hârbovăț Community of Nurses in Chișinău (late 19th - early 20th centuries): the image and history
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VI [XXI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Ana Grițco
The church – a hypostasis of the charity gesture from Bessarabia in the modern period
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. III [XVIII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Ana Grițco
Royal visit to Chișinău (1920) - images and history
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VIII [XXIII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
The music is recorded on a cylinder with pins. The interior is divided into three compartments: the first contains the crank and the mechanism that operates the cylinder with pins, the second - the cylinder with pins and vibrating lamellae, and the third - two levers for starting and stopping the melody...
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.