-40%
RARE DEVEAU “INTERTALK” ANTIQUE INTERCOM TELEPHONE
$ 102.96
- Description
- Size Guide
Description
In the first third of the 20th century, telephones like this connected rooms in hotels and also in ritzy mansions, keeping the swells in touch with the staff. This is a very rare original, all-metal DeVeau “Intertalk” Automatic telephone made by the Stanley & Patterson company ofNew York
,
N.Y.
It features eight nickel-plated buttons to connect with that many other phones elsewhere in the building. “To call, remove receiver & push button,” it says on the nickel-plated face surrounding the transmitter (mouthpiece). Also imprinted on that plate is the DeVeau logo inside a diamond outline and the words “
Stanley
&
Patterson
,
New York
, N.Y.
USA
,” and the word “Automatic” below the diamond logo. The “DeVeau” diamond also appears on the body of the box below the buttons. The metal box measures approximately 6 ½ inches by 9 ½ inches, and includes all its original inner workings and most of its wiring. I can’t tell if the paint is original, but these phones almost always were black. I’m not sure if the ringer bells on top originally were black, but my guess is that since this type of utilitarian phone wasn’t usually displayed prominently, the company wouldn’t have gone to the expense of plating the bells. There is some pitting on the bells, but there is no rust anywhere on the phone. The original plastic windows beside each button are yellowed but have no rips or holes and each number is clearly visible. The original mouthpiece has a miniscule chip on the outer edge, but you almost have to feel it to find it. The main body of the receiver (earpiece) has some cracks but is solid. The threaded receiver cap – whose edge is sculpted in an art deco style – has a chip about 1 1/2 inches long, but it has plenty of threads to hold it securely to the receiver body. I could find no identifying marks on the receiver. At some point the receiver wiring was replaced with more modern – but still old – rubber-sheathed wiring. Even with its blemishes, this very rare hotel phone displays well as is. Free shipping only to U.S. Lower 48.