Before the iPod, Walkman, turntable, or phonograph there was the music box. Though it's hard to imagine it now, the music box was actually an important first step on the road to the miniaturization of sound. Prior to the music box, non-performed music was produced by large and bulky contraptions using bells or chimes. The music box brought melodies into the home and, eventually, rings, medallions, and even perfume bottles. Music boxes were also hidden within table-top snuff containers inlaid with gold, pearls, and ivory. The key to the music boxes' portability was a tuned steel comb, invented in 1796 by Antoine Favre in Switzerland’s clock-making region, La Vallée de Joux. The first steel combs were made from varying lengths of metal arranged in a curving fan-shape. As the pins on a rotating cylinder struck the teeth of the comb, notes were produced. Much like early musical clocks, these machines were spring-wound. In 1810, David LeCoultre, of the famous LeCoultre watch-making family, designed a brass cylinder to play notes on a straight length of tuned steel teeth. Longer cylinders could be pinned for multiple tunes and adjusted laterally to switch between songs.
Selected Products
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Music Box Wind Up
Music Box Happy Birthday
Childrens Music Box
Music Box Ocean
Inlaid Music Box
Music Box Beatrix Potter
Dangerous Music D Box
Music Box Elfen Lied
Music Box Guitar
Music Box Christmas
Music Box Angel
Music Box Elfen Lied
Music Box Harry Potter Theme
Music Box Christening
Italian Inlaid Music Box
Music Box La Vie En Rose
Music Box Key Chain
Music Box For Baby
Music Box Vintage
Music Box 50 Note
Music Box Teaching Clock
Music Box Fur Elise
Music Box Dancing
Ghibli Music Box
Sankyo Music Box Keychain
Music Box Robot
Music Box Giraffe
Anri Music Box
Music Box Anniversary Waltz
Music Box Reuge
Music Jewelry Box
Music Box Dancing
Music Box Jewelry Box For Girls
Make Your Own Music Box
Music Box For Mobile
Disc Music Box