Mahogany Gramophone with Orange Cone, 1912

• Circa - A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.
• Mahogany - Mahogany is a dense, close grained red-coloured timber from the West Indies and Central America. It was first imported into Europe in the the early 18th century and its use continued through the 19th century. It was popular for furniture making because of its strength, the wide boards available, the distinctive grain on some boards, termed flame mahogany and the rich warm colour of the timber when it was polished.. The "flame" was produced where a limb grew out from the trunk of the tree, and this timber was usually sliced into veneers for feature panels on doors, backs and cornices.
  
  Some terms used to describe mahogany relate to the country from which it originally came, such as "Cuban" mahogany, "Honduras" mahogany etc. However unless the wood has been tested the names assigned are more a selling feature, rather than a true indication of the timber's origin.
• Cone - A popular decorative motif based on the shape of the pine cone, and used in silver ceramics and furniture. Because of its shape it is most suitable for use as a finial.
• His Masters Voice - "His Master's Voice", abbreviated HMV is a trademark in the music business, the image coming from a painting of the same name by English artist Francis Barraud. The American rights to the picture were purchased about 1899 by the Victor Talking Machine Company founded by the inventor of the gramophone, Emile Berliner after the painting had been modified to show the dog named "Nipper" listening to one of Victor Talking Machine Company's gramophones.
  
  Further capitalising on the logo, an additional trademark, "Little Nipper" was later registered and used for children's records and radios.
  
  Ownership of the HMV trademark was transferred through a number of companies in the music business during the 20th century including RCA (Radio Corporation of America) and EMI.
  
  Barraud, the artist died in 1924 and the painting is now in the public domain, although the trademark is still valid.

This item has been included into following indexes:

• gramophones - HMV 26