Broadwood & Son Square Piano: Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

This square piano was made by John Broadwood & Sons in London, England around 1825-1830. The inscription on the name board reads “John Broadwood & Sons. / Makers to His Majesty & The Princesses / Great Pulteney Street, Golden Square, / London.” During the companies peak years, the 1820’s - 1850’s, the Broadwood became the exemplary “English piano,” played by all the famous musicians of the time. The piano has a compass of FF-f4, English jack action with escapement, leather hammers, double-strings, 2 pedals: damper and an uncertain action, a wood frame, and a mahogany case.

Materials, dates and provenance

• date made: 1825 - 1830
• maker: John Broadwood & Son
• Object Name: piano
• Place Made: United Kingdom: England, London
• ID Number: MI.095813
• catalog number: 95813
• accession number: 29145
• Credit Line: Mrs. J. Crosby Brown
• Data Source: National Museum of American History

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of American History through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed.