Vintage B-flat cornet from the London workshop of BESSON: Stamped on bell “ Chicago / Bore / 50 MEDALS OF HONOUR” / monogram FB / “Besson & Co. / ``Prototype'' / 198 EUSTON ROAD / LONDON” / star / “ENGLAND / C. Fischer / 6 4th Av., N.Y. / Sole Agent U. States”; on second valve “Besson & Co.” / star / “BREVETÉ / 84683” (C. 1910). Original and very clean example, 100% original silver plate to the body and bell, gold-plated valve caps, gold-plate inside the bell. Original nickel-alloy valves not perfect but very good, showing minimal wear. No dents or damage anywhere. Including: original case; quick-change Bb to A tuning slide; two original mouthpipes with matching serial number; original lyre with Besson stamp; two tuning slides (high pitch / low pitch); original (?) straight mute (no stamp); gold-plated original “prototype 18” mouthpiece; Keefer #2 cornet mouthpiece. Rather special due to being clean, undamaged and with all original bits and pieces. Office Code: DD E, R, W *** BEFORE WE SEND ANYTHING TO YOU…. The instrument is carefully inspected by us to make certain it’s spotlessly clean. We disinfect the exterior of the instrument, spray the exterior of the case as well. We do not send anything to you without it’s being checked and then checked again. *** A FEW WORDS ABOUT OUR SENDING “ON APPROVAL”… We’ve had the same policy for half a century, are always happy to send almost anything for a short trial period. Five days is, we believe, sufficient for a trained musician to decide if the item sent them is a good match. A small percentage of instruments we send out are returned to us. Sometimes it’s a money issue, more often it’s “…you might consider taking lessons”. But as we always say, “If you don’t buy, we’ll still be friends. We’ve had recent questions, though, about how we clean up returned approvals. You should know… With BRASS instruments, we take everything apart, then give the instrument a quick bath. Soap and water, but not long enough to harm the finish. Everything is lightly sprayed with a disinfectant, Then, back in the case after a spray to the exterior and carrying handles of the case. Not sure what the other shops are doing about this issue (I’ve asked, have had no replies), but we think our clean-up work is exactly what’s required to keep everybody safe.*** |