Victor Import Labels
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The Gramophone Company
began to pressing recordings from metal parts, i.e., stampers, imported
from the Victor Company as early as April 1901. These were identified
by the following formula placed below the Recoding Angel trademark,
which was reduced in size, and above the Gramophone Company designation.
|
Made
by
The Victor
Talking Machine Co., Camden, U.S.A.
For sale in The
British Possessions (except Canada) And on the Continent
of Europe
By The Gramophone
and Typewriter Ltd.
and Sister
Companies |
The initial G&T
pressings of Victor imports were assigned catalog numbers in the
3000 series, which conflicted with G&T’s own series of solo
female recordings. Since the ten-inch records had been designed
as Victor Monarchs in America, the prefix V.M. was now added
to clarify the conflict.
In addition to the
smaller Angel trademark, the Victor issues of imported recordings
from April 1903 to February 1905 were given catalog numbers with
the prefix V.M. for both ten- and twelve- inch records. The
meaning of this prefix is not quite clear at this point, since it
was used for both sizes. It is found on thirteen of the Caruso recordings
made for Victor in February and April 1904 and February 27, 1905,
including seven ten-inch and six twelve-inch recordings, issued
by the Gramophone and Typewriter Ltd., before November 19, 1907,
when the company designation was changed to The Gramophone Company
Limited. The prefix is not found on imports issued with pre-DOG
labels.
The G&T label
on the left above, recorded February 27, 1905, should have been
issued with the Victor import imprint, while the pre-DOG label on
the right, issued after November 18, 1907, was never printed with
the import information.
Note that the Angel
trademark on the imported labels is much smaller than those seen
on the Russian pre-DOG label on the right below. In the pair of
labels below, the smaller Angel is found on the Monarch label, although
the two labels are identical in overall diameter, 91 mm.
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| Vienna
June 1907 |
Milan
June 1907 |
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| London
Pre-DOG, Sep-Oct 1907 |
Russian
Pre-DOG, June 28, 1910 |
The Gramophone
Company or pre-DOG Period
On November 18, 1907
the company’s name was changed to The Gramophone Company, Limited.
This date marked the beginning of the so-called pre-DOG period,
when the company’s designation below the trademark was changed from
The Gramophone
& Typewriter Limited, and Sister Companies to
The Gramophone Company, Limited, and Sister Companies, accompanied
by the font change as shown.
| |
|
January 10, 1908, stamper
II November 6, 1909
|
The pre-DOG format
is seen on both red and black labels, as well on pink, pale green
and pale blue preceding the introduction of the DOG trademark in
August 1910. These labels are often referred to as GCL, from
the initials of the new company designation. Some pressing made
in Russia bear the overprint
indicating that the
record had been manufactured in Riga. The translation is Manufactured
by "society GRAMOPHONE with limited responsibility" in RIGA.
The Russian company designation may also be printed on the label.
| |
| Russian
company overprint |
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Russian
company designation
|
The
labels below show pre-DOG Red Celebrity labels, recorded in 1904
and in late October 1904 or early November 1907. They are unusual
because the Red Celebrity label had been replaced by pink labels
in late 1906. Obviously the exact dates are uncertain. Several others
are known.
