From:Rocky Hill War Memorial Museum
Name/Title'DECCA' Portable Gramophone, 1914 pattern.
About this objectPortable gramophone housed in a leatherette-covered carrying case with a leather handle for transport. The hinged lid opens to reveal the tone arm and reproducer, together with a concave metal sound resonator embossed with the Decca name. The lower section contains the spring-driven motor mechanism and felt-covered turntable. Playback speed is regulated by a control lever, while the motor is powered by a detachable winding handle inserted into the side of the case.
This version was made in London circa 1920 by Barnett Samuel and Sons/Decca Gramophone Company, who manufactured the portable 'Dulcephone' gramophone, sold under the trade name 'Decca’, from 1914. Around 50,000 Decca instruments were made, and many of them accompanied the British and Commonwealth troops in the Gallipoli and Western Front trenches during the Great War; it was often referred to as the ‘Trench Decca’.
Designed for the playback of 78 rpm shellac records, portable gramophones such as this provided recorded music in homes and locations without access to electricity during the early twentieth century.
MakerBarnett Samuel & Sons, (Decca)
Maker RoleManufacturer
Date Madec.1920s
Period20th-century
Place MadeThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Place NotesLondon
Medium and MaterialsTimber, metal, nickel-plated steel, felt, leatherette, leather, glass, paper.
Inscription and MarksImpressed on playing arm: R.D. No. 71877 PAT. 33033 10025–20
TechniqueSpring-driven mechanical sound reproduction; timber and metal construction with nickel-plated components
Measurements32 cm (Length), 31 cm (Width), 23 cm (Height)
Subject and Association KeywordsDECCA
Subject and Association KeywordsBarnett Samuel and Sons
Subject and Association KeywordsTrench Decca
Subject and Association KeywordsGramophones
Named CollectionAyling Collection
Object TypeGramophones
Object number2026.1071.1
Copyright LicenceAll rights reserved
