Topic: Four Unidentified Ouraline Piano Insulators

[Wynkin]

Found three of these in France and one in UK.

Found the one on the left in the first photo today, the seller at the flea market had two green, two bright blue and a clear one.

Only this one responded to UV, in retrospect at a Euro each, maybe I should have bought them all but I collect ouraline/uranium glass.

Any ideas?

[catshome]

Have you tried a search on the board......there are a number of posts about insulators that may interest you.  If you haven't searched the board before, you'll find the button at the top of the page.

[thewingedsphinx]

Hi, unmarked ones are hard to identify but here his my view.
Your jelly mould looks like Its based on a an original Percival vickers mould registered to Dawkins 1959 some piccies are in the gallery. Your one is a later reproduction 1900 ish possibly the same mould but different stamp.
The cogwheels are in catalogues from Edward Moore and Percival vickers and I believe others made them.
Octagonal ones are found in Davidson catalogue and illustrations found for Percival Vickers and Molineaux And Webb, yours looks like a Percival vickers one. Only the early ones react to uv light.
Last one is unusual I don’t think it’s English.

Checkout piano insulators on this site and the gallery cheers Mike

[Wynkin]

Thank you for your kind help. I found the one on the right (photo in natural light) in Perigueux France in the bottom of a box marked everything 1 euro.

It's the small circles around the inner that make it different to so many others.

I call these piano insulators or furniture coasters what are these called on this forum as I could find little about them?

[thewingedsphinx]

Hi, there’s lots of various names, Castor Cups, piano feet, piano rests, insulator.
Pianoforte??
Cheers Mike

[thewingedsphinx]

Oops got the wrong century 1859.  Hopefully this link works. Your one looks like a later version?

https://www.glassmessages.com/index.php/topic,49980.msg282361.html#msg282361

[chopin-liszt]

A pianoforte is the "modern" and stronger version of the very delicate old things Beethoven had to use and frequently broke.
They have sustain and dampening foot pedals, which an ordinary piano then would not have had.
All modern pianos are pianofortes. Certainly from around 1850 or just after.
I haven't ever found out why a grand piano has a third pedal or what it does.
I really don't think anybody would ever have called an insulator a "pianoforte".
The "forte" bit means strong.
 

[Wynkin]

I agree I have a few square pianos, they are not forte as they are quite quiet. But they do have a pedal.

[rosieposie]

 Sue, The central pedal on a grand piano sustains any notes that were depressed when the pedal is used... called a sostenuto pedal it holds the notes played for longer than they would otherwise be held.
Good old Wiki has a good definition,  but rambles on rather more than we have time to read!
 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sostenuto

[Wynkin]

Forte means loud not strong.

The earlier square pianos were quieter.