Georgian Period Whistles, Cast Iron Whistles. A. Strauss

Georgian Period Whistles, British made whistles in the Pre Victorian times were a theme I was interested in for over a decade, New antique whistles surface here and there and throw light on the development of ‘Professional’ Round whistles, time line and makers, of which little is known about. *
But these certainly give a new perspective to the term IRONMONGERS in the 17th 18th 19th century who were making whistles, and which later became more Brass Founders I believe.
Before I put many of the thoughts, comments & observations on these,
I share some of mine and others, Needless to say all very rare.
Starting with a Trio of Military whistles from my own collection,
most possibly by J. Dixon of Sheffield very early 1800, These include few amazing features for the whistle student and scholars who have a keen eye.
The sound  is of each one is outstanding, (I am tempted to say the best I heard ) Interestingly the trio forms the sound of a triad chord,
I will edit and add comments  later.(There is a LOT to be said and learn)

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Back view of three cast Iron Whistles Strauss Collection,

Next are two whistles with what I call Mushroom Top with no loop hole,
The one on left is a cast Iron one which was on eBay, It is in the collection of Joseph Grainger, an American collector. On the Right side one made of base metal (Not Georgian period & not Iron  but interesting & has a similar top)
which showed on eBay lately, Not a cast one Piece & Fipple, This is an early original design, not met with in metal before, it has two windows and the shape combines a Conical Bulbous body round whistle with a Compound Round Mouthpiece. Some of these features can be met with mostly in wood & horn round whistles that were made in France & Germany, up to the 1860’s & 70’s.

6 Views of a cast metal round conical two windows whistle.
(More notes to follow )
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Other early cast Iron shapes are Double end whistles, SNCW (Single note conical whistles – at times called Beaufort in luck of a better term)
Here is an a example of an early figural whistle jewel, made of Iron & Gold.

To Be Continued

* (See my articles about Dixon & Stevens here, posted in recent years  and one posted many years ago about Round Pea Whistles)  I know not of any serious research done, about these Pre 1850’s whistles,  In the past I wrote some on these and will add an in depth text & thoughts.

If you do have similar ones I urge you to send me a photo : info@whistlemuseum.com

Needless to say I am always glad when people share
Posts from my Blog via links, or tell their friends or fellow collectors about it.

All Rights Reserved, to A. Strauss Whistle Museum, Please Do not Use or Copy with out special permission.

Antique Whistles Ancien Sifflets Museum Appeaux, Appeau Merle

11 thoughts on “Georgian Period Whistles, Cast Iron Whistles. A. Strauss”

  1. Would it be possible to identify a whistle I’ve had for some years. It appears to be of turned brass and has no hole for a suspension loop. There are no manufacturers marks. Happy to send a photograph but not sure how to do the through your site.

    Reply

  2. Hi, I have just come across what appears to be a fine example of an early English Georgian cast iron whistle, that was in a small collection of whistles in Cornwall, England.

    I would value your knowledge as to its age and possible maker?

    Do you have an email address I can send some photos to for your viewing?

    Many thanks

    Reply

  3. Hello,
    I was intrigued by the discussion on Georgian Period whistles, particularly military examples. My grandfather was a collector of Napoleonic War militaria and amasses a collection of weapons and accoutrements belonging to troops in Wellington’s army. One piece that always interested me is Beaufort whistle as worn by Rifle Regiment officers. It is made of silver and bears hallmarks dating it to 1809 which is right in the midst of the Peninsular War. The whistle type was made famous by the Richard Sharpe novels and I have never seen another Georgian example, let alone one dating so early. I was wondering when such whistles became popular in the Rifles and if there are other early examples existent.
    Thanks and Happy Holidays!
    PJ

    Reply

    1. Hi PJ , I would be glad to see the whistle,
      In order to give an accurate answer,
      Please send photo,
      Regards
      Avner Strauss

      Reply

  4. Hi, if you are still reading comments on this page, can you help me identify a whistle I read about in a McSweeny’s story? It looks like a rams horn and the author said someone’s mom got it in Mexico. I am obsessed with it, hoping to find out where I can get one like it. I tried Google image search and also posting the image and searching for similar images but no luck. Anyway just reaching out on a whim in case you are still doing research. Here is the link https://www.mcsweeneys.net/articles/shrimp-whistle

    Reply

    2. Hi I recognize the whistle, It is probably a British Late Victorian Jewel Whistle made mostly in Silver and gold
      It has a Ram’s horn shape, when these are that small these were made as charms for a bracelet to be hanged on with other small figural objects,
      I do have a few variations albeit a bit larger, It is also possible that one was made in Mexico by a silversmith.
      Regards
      Avner

      Reply

  5. Good morning. Im looking for a WW2 US NAVY pilot whistle but YELLOW example not green. Maybe you can help me to locate one?

    Thanks for help,
    Jerry

    Reply

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