We have always considered and collected these commercial masks and helmets as industries tribal art. Examples can be elegant in their simplicity or bazaar and complex. They are always unique, suprising and filled with personality.
Ericsson “Eiffel Tower” Desk Stand Phone, 1890s
This original phone uses its skeletal structure to showcase telephone technology. It was made by the independent Ericsson Company and was used by the independent telephone systems struggling against the Bell System’s monopoly on service and equipment. The phone is deceptively decorative–the phone’s “legs” serve as the magnet for the signaling magneto. It includes the circular wire bridge and fabric covered cords. We did not want to polish or repaint the original finishes it was too nice as is… $1600
