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Murtogh D. Guinness Collection

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Guinness Collection entrance.

The Guinness Collection consists of mechanical musical instruments and automata originating from Europe and North America. The collection was created by Murtogh D. Guinness who received his first Swiss-made music box at the age of six, igniting a life-long passion. The collection is currently on display at the Morris Museum.

History  [edit]

Murtogh David Guinness was born in London in 1913[1], an heir to the Guinness brewing company. He began collecting music boxes around the age of five or six after receiving one as a gift from his mother, Lady Evelyn Hilda Stuart Erskine[2]. His passion for music boxes was rekindled after his mother's passing and by 1940 he was an active collector, now expanding into automata.

His Manhattan townhouse held his personal collection. Guinness encouraged friends and family to experience and interact with his collection. In addition to collecting he was an active member of the Music Box Society International, serving as it's vice president from 1962-1963. He also founded it's European counterpart, the Musical Box Society of Great Britain. He published a short book detailing the history of mechanical music in 1982[3].

In 2002, Guinness died at the age of eighty-eight in New York City. Prior to his death he founded The Lutece Foundation to oversee his collection with the mission to have the collection available to the public[4]. The collection was awarded to the Morris Museum in 2003. In response, the museum began a fundraising campaign to accommodate the collection, constructing a new wing, research center, conservation workshop, and view-able storage for the collection. The exhibit opened in 2007 containing 150 objects. View-able storage was completed in 2008 with an additional 600 objects and over 5000 pieces of media. Since the exhibit's opening a daily demonstration of select pieces is offered to visitors. The collection is currently the largest collection of of cylinder and disc musical boxes and automata in the United States.

Music Boxes[edit]

With dates ranging from early 18th to mid 19th century the collection features predominantly Swiss cylinder music boxes and disk music boxes from America and Germany. Many of these cylinder boxes are accredited to Nichole Freres. Other makers represented in the collection include; LeCoultre, Regina Music Box Co., Polyphon, and Symphonion. The music boxes range in size and functionality, with some pieces dual functioning as a desk, sewing kit, and chair respectively. The smallest piece is a musical ring with animated scene by Piguet et Capt, circa 1802-11.

Regina Boxes[edit]

Founded and operated in New Jersey in the early 19th century, The Regina Music Box company built popular and affordable disc-operated musical boxes, some with 78 rpm phonograph attachments. The collection features the popular "Corona" Style 35, one of the first jukeboxes, built in 1902, as well as the "Reginaphone" model 240 built in 1909.

Mechanical Pianos & Organs[edit]

Found outside the home public venues like hotels and apart of Coney Island attractions, the collection holds a variety of organs including traditional hand-crank street organs and electric motor-driven, coin operated organs. There are also several self-playing instruments including a piano, the Encore Automatic Banjo, and the Wurlitzer Automatic Harp. The collection includes manufacturer Ludwig Hupfeld and pieces such as the Mills Violano-Virtuoso, a Limonaire Frères Fairground organ, and a Poppers “Rex” Orchestration.

Automata[edit]

A selection of automata featured in the Guinness Collection.

The automata collection is almost exclusively of French origin. It includes pieces by Roullet & Decamps as well as Gustave Vichy, Renou, Leopold Lambert. The collection reflects late 19th century French sensibilities, culture, and technology.Featured dolls perform an array of tasks ranging from every-day comedy, circus performances, and musicianship. Some pieces evoke the Orientalism style popular at the time as well as and anti-aristocratic sentiment brought on by the French revolution. This anti-aristocratic sentiment is reflected in the decorated monkey automaton, including dandies, a harpist, and violinist.

"Joueur de Flute" or Flute Player[edit]

The flutist was created by Alexander Nicolas Theroude sometime between 1869-1877. Now dressed in a turban and suit-coat the flutist previously wore a ragamuffin style costume. The doll is made of paper-mâché and stands at 4'5".

References[edit]

  1. "Murtogh David Guinness (1913-2002) | WikiTree FREE Family Tree". www.wikitree.com. Retrieved 2018-07-12.
  2. "Evelyn Hilda Stuart (Erskine) Guinness (1883-1939) | WikiTree FREE Family Tree". www.wikitree.com. Retrieved 2018-07-27.
  3. Guinness, Murtogh (1982). The Murtogh Guinness Collection. New York. Search this book on
  4. Snyder-Grenier, Ellen (2011). Musical Machines and Living Dolls. Morristown New Jersey: Morris Museum. Search this book on

External links[edit]

  1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWUVsH8EBc8
  2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1TxrjpWGRXU


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