The Allen Koenigsberg Phonograph Collection
Lot 3310:
Description
The Mikiphone pocket disc phonograph is widely celebrated as the world’s first pocket record player. Designed in 1924 by Hungarian brothers Miklós and Étienne Vadász, this mechanical marvel shrank standard gramophone technology into a compact case resembling an oversized gentleman’s pocket watch. It measures just 4.5 inches in diameter and 1.8 inches thick when closed and weighs approximately 2 pounds. It is engineered primarily to play standard 10-inch, 78 RPM shellac records and is powered entirely by a hand-cranked internal spring motor requiring no electricity or batteries. Approximately 180,000 units were manufactured between 1925 and 1927. Because the tiny mechanical parts required extreme precision, the Vadász brothers contracted the famous Swiss clockwork and music box manufacturer Maison Paillard in Saint Croix, Switzerland, to mass-produce the device. The design was so highly regarded that it won first prize at an international music exhibition in Geneva in 1927. This one is in VG original condition. It winds, plays, and all parts are present. Comes with original leatherette carrying case. From the Allen Koenigsberg collection.
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