Title: Horn (French Horn)

Maker: Raoux

Model: N/A

Date: c. 1830-1850

Geography: Paris, France, Europe

Material: Brass

Serial Number: N/A

Accession Number: GL-059_A3-06

Provenance: Founding Greenleaf Donation from Conn Museum, 1969

Description

Key: TBD

Pitch: TBD

Finish: Brass

Lacquer: No

Engraving: Bell rim stamped with “RAOUX SEUL FOURNISSEUR DU ROI RUE SERPENTE A PARIS” (partially illegible). This approximately translates to “Raoux, sole supplier to the King, rue Serpente, Paris”.

Mouthpiece: No

Accessories: The horn has two Stölzel valves and are a removable valve set. It likely had additional crooks, shanks, and alternate slides which are no longer present.

Case: No

Notes:

This horn was likely made by Marcel Auguste Raoux (1795–1871), who was the last generation of the famous French Raoux family of instrument makers. Members of the Raoux family were master horn makers and horn design innovators. The Raoux business was run at several buildings at rue Serpente in Paris, France during the late 1700s into the mid 1800s. According to the “VM Collectables” website, “[Auguste and his father Lucien Joseph Raoux] had managed to obtain licences to be instrument makers to the king and royal music academy. This is shown by the stamp referring to the ‘sole supplier of the king’ (SEUL FOURNISSEUR DU ROI). … It was then in 1830 that Auguste lost his royal patronages and the patents with the 1830 revolution.” (Source: https://vmcollectables.com/archive/brasswind/cornopean-raoux-auguste/)
This instrument has two Stölzel valves, which is an early type of valve invented by Heinrich Stölzel (1777-1844) in the early 1800s. This valve design is unusual in that the valve tubes have an open bottom, which acts as the bottom hole. The valve design had some issues and created air resistance and was replaced by later valve types.
Stamped “7” and “8” on valve casings and valve rims.
Oval stamp on bell with an “AR” symbol.