First Telephone made by L.M. Ericsson, 1878

Stamped with: "2100V - 213SE - Recin & Bratt, Stockholm", with German brass and bakelite trumpet (minor damage), ht. 7 ¾ in. - Note: One of the very first Ericson telephones from 1878-79 and more or less a copy of the Siemens telephone but some improvements. Ericsson began by repairing telegraphs, scientific instruments and telephones in his workshop. In late 1878 he sold his own first telephone. One of his customers was Recin & Bratt, an independent company with close ties to Stockholm Bell, as the owners sat on the board of directors of the Bell company and traded in telephone equipment on their behalf. It is unclear why this telephone carries their name rather than Ericsson’s own, however it is tempting to speculate that it is the only known example thus marked. Very few ‘butter stamp’ telephones were built by Ericsson: some 36 units in 1878 and 74 units in 1879. Production lasted until 1882 but the later are numbered and have instructions printed on the base. - Literature: For an early description of magnetic telephones and their development, see Preece and Maier (1889), "The Telephone". For a comparison between Ericsson and Siemens & Halske receivers, see Povey and Earl (1988), "Vintage Telephones of the World", figures 1.7 and 1.8; Ken Bushell article: http://telephonecollecting.org/receiver.html

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)