• 1865 Chickering Square Grand Piano

One of the primary ways you can begin to investigate the value of your piano is by locating the serial number. The serial number is considered your piano’s birth certificate, and it is the way the original manufacturer assigned it a unique.

1. Antique 1947-1950 Chickering Piano Item: Used Condition: Good Shipping: Local Pick-Up Only Up for sale is an antique console 88 key Chickering& Sons piano. Based on the serial number. This piano was manufactured between 1947 and 1950.
2. Many piano manufacturers placed serial numbers in a variety of places. Pianos also have other numbers printed on them such as part numbers and many other pianos do not have a serial number at all. Many pianos will have a 4, 5 or 6 digit serial number to identify the age of the piano.
3. .Serial Number: Piano 324308 / Bench 224308 (Size 60' x 60') Chickering and Sons was an American piano manufacturer located in Boston, Massachusetts, known for producing award-winning instruments of superb quality and design. The company was founded in 1823 by Jonas Chickering and James Stewart, but the partnership dissolved four years later.

Restoring a Chickering Piano. The early history of the Chickering & Sons piano brand in America adds to the value of many of their pianos today. As one of the first piano manufacturers in America in the 1800s, Chickering & Sons produced pianos which now serve as unique, early-American musical artifacts. This grand piano was made by Chickering and Sons in Boston, Massachusetts in 1865. This piano is identical to the one that Chickering won a gold medal with at the Paris Exposition in 1867. The piano is serial number 27733 and has a compass of AAA-c5, Edwin Brown patented action, copper-wound and plain steel strings, 1, 2, or 3 strings per note, layers of felt hammers, 2 pedals: una corda.

However, locating it can be tricky. We provide our customers with the following real-life diagrams to quickly help them find the serial number on their grand or upright piano.

Grand serial numbers like on the Steinway pictured above may be found in many different places. The various places on the diagram point to some possible locations.

Typically, a serial number has 5 to 7 digits, but in some cases, it may have fewer or more and may also include a letter. This is a view of the grand with the lid open and the music desk removed. It may be necessary to clean dust off the harp or soundboard before the serial number can be seen.

Upright or vertical piano serial numbers can usually be found by lifting the lid and looking inside on the gold harp or plate. It is usually not necessary to remove the upper front panel to find the serial number (as in this picture).

By locating the serial number, you can begin your research to know the value of the piano. The first thing the serial number tells you is the age of the piano. Paired with the who made the piano, the age is a key piece of information, and many piano experts can begin to assign a value quickly after assessing the condition and a few other criteria.

Sometimes, however, a serial number can be nearly impossible to find, even to professionals who know where to look and have identified thousands of serial numbers in their years of expertise. If you are running into this problem, feel free to give us a call, and we’ll be happy to work with you to locate your serial number.

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Original image sources:

Grand piano: https://www.amromusic.com/

Upright piano: http://www.steinhovenpianos.com/

1865 Chickering Square Grand Piano