Suomi harmonikka

This accordion has been shown to Aki Lievonen and, according to him, the instrument belonged to the first 50 accordion manufacture batch. The serial number written with a pencil is 25. In other words, the accordion in the picture is the 25th accordion made in the factory, and it is one of the very first accordions with steps on melody side. The first accordions were made with the text type shown in the picture. The series’s instrument number four was originally a flat bed accordion, but it has been transformed to have steps. The early instruments almost all were flatbeds.

The reeds are german Dix reeds which is typical for the time period, and the treble has one register. The early models didn’t have an air button on the bass, just like on this one. The first accordioins made in Vyborg were largely copies of Italian accordions and the instrument in the picture still has a lot of features of Cooperativa accordions. Even the grill with the harp playing women are almost identical to their Italian model. The only clear difference in the grill is that the Cooperativa grill is smooth on surface, but the grills made in Vyborg is with a serrated pattern. This is how to define the the grill origin.