Expert: Kenton Scott - 3/9/2008

Question
My son was recently given an old cornet and case from an older person on our street who has since moved away.  I am curious how old the cornet may be and whether it was a popular model.It has fancy engraving on the top of the horn including "ORPHEUS" and I see in small print Slovakia printed near the valves. I am assuming there is where it was made.

Answer
I have seen examples of the Orpheus instruments, and they most certainly imports that had the name put on them by a dealer.  The McKinley Act of 1891 required that all instruments be labeled as to the country of manufacture, and a subsequent law in 1923 added the requirement that it also contain the words "made in".  So it sounds like yours much fit between those two dates.