Hi you all,
this may be stupid question but, some time ago I found a old wooden flute by Le Comte st Gilles Paris.
Does anybody have any info about the maker, or anything.
esko :roll:
Arsene Lecomte ,Rue St Gilles ,Paris .1818 - 1892
A manufacturer of ( mainly ) brass instruments .
Yes, well, perhaps we ought to be a little more specific in our assistance to this fellow. (All this, I will attribute, to the 6th Edition of Langwills)
Arsene Zoe Lecomte was BORN in 1818 and DIED in 1892, at age 73.
His firm began in 1859 as a brass instrument shop and in 1860 was already making the SAX model under license. A rather large workforce, apparently reaching 150 by 1867 when he expanded to string instruments (no woodwinds as yet).
Interestingly, in 1888 the firm began making SAXophones with a part-Boehm key mechanism, the earliest of its type.
WOODWINDS were added to the manufactory c.1892 through a partnership with the firm of Massin & Thibouville (an unknown member of that famous French family).
So, that would mean your flute is likely made no earlier than 1892.
From 1859, the firm address was at “rue St. Gilles Marais 12”
AT the time, the maker’s mark is shown to have been:
(tuning fork)/A.L & Cie/A.LECOMTE & CIE/PARIS/rue St. Giles 12 (sic; probably should be “Gilles”)
(but Langwill’s and its current editor/publisher have gotten several entries wrong or sadly incomplete on material like this mostly because other flutes have popped up with markings and addresses that were “unrecorded” until now…so it’s usually just a good barometer rather than gospel)
The firm was eventually devoured by the Couesnon firm in Paris, which at one time was the largest musical instrument manufacturer in the world with 8 factories and a workforce of over 1000!
Anyway…hope this helps!
Dave Migoya
(Of Course, I’m Probably Just Lying! 
)
Two attacks on the publisher of The New Langwill Index in three days .
Is this a record ?
Dave,
Does Langwill have information like that on Gerock? (C. Gerock/79 Cornhill/London) If it does, would you share?
Thanks,
Tony
Thank you for fast service.
I just got back home and look at the flute again.
The marking is A. LECOMTE & CO
rue St Gilles 12
PARIS
It has 11 key’s, and it is in working condition, does any of you have somekind of idea the price of such instrument ?.
Esko 
Well heck Esko I`ll give you a hundred bucks for it
Tom
Can you put a photo up ?
Two attacks on the publisher of The New Langwill Index in three days <<
Can’t speak to what you’re implying, but I can say it’s my opinion that Langwill’s is not entirely accurate. If an opinion is an attack, then some people are very offensive.
RE:
Does Langwill have information like that on Gerock? (C. Gerock/79 Cornhill/London)<<
Gerock at that address has two marks: C. Gerock and later as Gerock & Wolf.
Let’s presume yours is the first.
Began instrument manufacture in 1805 (after he was “granted freedom of Musicans’ Company as ‘son of Jacob Gerock of Titzfield,Weinsberg, Germany…’”).
Then was partnered with George Astor 1824-27 (which is a great time, as Astor was the favored flute maker of Charles Nicholson Jr.)
The address for 70 Cornhill shows it as the time of c.1824+
Partnered with Wolf in 1831, so perhaps (?) your flute fits that time.
Too, it notes that the Dayton Miller collection has 6 examples of the flute. You might check there to see and make eye on DCM’s notes.
Hope this helps!
Dave M
(Of course, I’m probably Lying! )