These are stock books recording the delivery of woodwind and brasswind instruments into stock by named workmen with dates, a brief description of each instrument, and the date of the sale to named customers.
Dates for each volume vary from instrument type to instrument type. Different instrument types had different serial number sequences, dispersed throughout the volumes. As a rough guide, the records begin in 1869 and end during the early 1940s.
The depression badly hit Rudall Carte (along with other instrument makers). Brasswind making ceased in 1939. The books show that the instruments were virtually unsaleable in the 1930s: some new instruments were "sold as secondhand" after being in stock for years.
Work books
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Black and white medium format negative (scanned positive)of head and shoulders close up of a woman with a plait over one shoulder
object | ARC/GUP/007/022
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Slide of Tibetan nomad woman on Qinghai plateau near Qinghai Lake
object | ARC/BAL/002/001/015
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Press cutting titled 'The Horniman Museum: New Department and New Guide'.
object | ARC/HMG/PR/004/001/144
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object | ARC/MCG/PH/0528-0535/0530
Collection Information
These objects are only a part of our collections, of which there are more than 350,000 objects. This information comes from our collections database. Some of this is incomplete and there may be errors. This part of the website is also still under construction, so there may be some fields repeated or incorrectly formatted information.
The database retains language taken from historical documents to help research. Please note that some records may feature language and reflect systems of thinking that are outdated and offensive. The database also includes information on objects that are considered secret or sacred by some communities.
If you have any further information about objects in our collections, can suggest corrections to our information or if you see content requiring immediate action, please contact us: enquiry@horniman.ac.uk