List of Keyboards
Square Piano by Miñaca, T
square piano in the English style. Compass FF to f4 (73 notes). Naturals covered in bone; sharps pear stained black. Standard English square-piano double action, with crank dampers. Hammer-head coverings consisting of layers of yellow cloth (with outer layer of leather in the treble) are old, possibly original. Two pedals (missing), one to raise the dampers; the second evidently lowered a batten (now missing; axle pins at its ends were held in the bass by a brass eye in the nut and in the treble by a block on the back wall) toward the strings up to about g1, most likely a bassoon (or possibly a harp, i.e., partially damping the strings). Bichord stringing. Bridge divided between A# and B.
Case (core of pine) exterior veneered in mahogany with holly (natural light and charred or stained black) banding and stringing around the bottom edge; nameboard veneered in ash, with dark and light holly banding and stringing at the top. Front corners and ends of nameboard are rounded. There were two drawers (now missing) under the bottom, to the right and left of the player. Nameboard cartouche is black paint (or ink) ground with decoration and inscription in gold and silver paints or inks applied with a pen; the decoration includes the head of an angel(?) at the top and a trumpet-playing angel at each side.
Stock photo - does not represent the instrument
Square Piano by Mickley, J
This square piano was made by Joseph J. Mickley in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania around 1830. In 1827, he won honorable mention at a Franklin Institute exhibition for a “plain and cheap” instrument. This is the only known piano by Mickley. This piano has a compass of FF-f4, an English double action, felt hammers, double-strings of which the first 8 notes are wound, with tuning pins on the right, 1 pedal: dampers, a wood frame, and a mahogany case
Square Piano by Meyer, C
This square piano was made by Conrad Meyer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania about 1833. Meyer was trained by his father as a cabinet-maker in his native Marburg. After service for a year in the Hessian army, he came to America in 1819 and worked for piano maker, Joseph Hisky in Baltimore. Meyer moved to Philadelphia in 1823 and had a long career there. This piano is serial number 240 and has a compass of FF-f4, an English double action, felt (?) hammers, double-strings, first 7 notes wound, with tuning pins at rear, 1 pedal: dampers, an iron hitch-pin plate frame, and a rosewood (?) case
Credit: Smithsonian
