Rare Interchangeable Musical Box by Ducommun-Girod, c. 1870

Gamme No. 3428, with six numbered cylinders playing six airs each, 103 teeth in comb (complete, bass in need of tuning), flat-topped winding lever stamped "Ducommun-Girod", unusual sprung brass cylinder-clamp, tune-sheet, veneered case with red interior and brass and boxwood inlay on lid, on matching base with sliding enamel-inlaid panel and storage drawer with ink stamp: "Ducommun-Girod, Fabricant de Pièces à Musique et (…) à Genève, Quai des Bergues N. 29", overall 23 in. (59.5 cm), cylinders 10 ¾ in. (27.5 cm), overall good restored playing condition, case with original finish, losses to brass inlay. – Note: The hinged cylinder-clamp is locked in place by a steel spring, a return spring raises the clamp when the first spring is released and a stack of three springs holds the cylinder arbor under tension. A hook on the upper arm of the clasp regulates the tension on the stack. There is a screw above the arbor for lifting the cylinder from the mechanism by hand, however the margin for human error and the small surface of the screw suggest that a "glove-hook" may originally have been provided for this part of the operation. – Four of the cylinders provide a varied operatic program, with works by Verdi (cylinder 1), Donizetti, Bellini, Rossini, Flotow, Meyerbeer, von Weber and Auber. The fourth and fifth cylinders are devoted to quadrilles and dance airs. – An early interchangeable musical box with several unusual features.

布雷克拍品等级是为了方便竞买人判断拍卖品的成色而设置的。布雷克等级用1到6级来标注外观和功能的成色，(从非常好到非常差)。 在目录图册里用括号里的2个数字来表示，前一个数字表示外观成色的级别，后一个数字表示功能成色的级别。如(3/2)表示外观成色是3(满意的)，功能成色2(好)。 成色 定义参照下列标准： 1 - 非常好 (未使用过，没有使用痕迹) 2 - 好 (新，极少的使用痕迹) 3 - 满意的 (普通的使用痕迹) 4 - 及格的 (明显的使用痕迹，某个非主要部件是后配的) 5 - 有缺陷的 (极明显的使用痕迹, 某个主要部件是后配的，功能上有缺陷，需要修理) 6 - 非常差 (严重破损, 缺少重要部件)