1912 Royal 5 #131794-5
Status: My Collection
Hunter: Mark Schrad (MLSchrad)
Created: 12-28-2023 at 08:03PM
Last Edit: 12-28-2023 at 08:04PM
Find on Ebay #AD
Find on Etsy #AD
Description:
This rather rough Royal 5 flatbed typewriter came to me in a lot of typewriters from an occasional collector in Royersford, PA in October of 2023. Not really much worth mentioning, until I unscrewed the foot posts and washers where the typewriter feet used to be, in order to replace them with new feet. I spotted one penny-sized washer that looked unlike any washer I'd ever seen. An astute colleague pointed out that it was a Chinese coin dating from the Jiaquing Dynasty (1796-1820--see photos). It is crazy to imagine some repairman a century looking about his environs for a washer, and grabbing instead this coin that was already over 100 years old at that time. And its even older now, of course. I intend to keep the coin with the machine... though not on the foot post.
Typeface Specimen:
Photos:
Hunter: Mark Schrad (MLSchrad)
Mark Schrad's Typewriter Galleries [ My Collection ] [ My Sightings ]
Status: Typewriter Hunter
Points: 31163
Professor of Political Science and Director of Russian Area Studies at Villanova University. Writes about alcohol politics, Russia, and international law when not refurbishing old typewriters.
RESEARCH NOTE: When researching the Royal 5 on a computer with lots of screen real estate, you may find that launching the Royal Serial Number page and the Royal 5 By Model/Year/Serial page in new browser windows can give you interesting perspectives on changes throughout the model series.
