Museum

4- British L.M. Ericsson No.4 1908 y.

Self contained magneto table telephone made by Ericsson and known as the 'Skeleton Telephone'. GPO (General Post Office) model No.16. The transmitter was powered by local batteries housed in a separate battery box. Introduced around 1895. The GPO version was painted black and had no transfers printed on it. This is an early form of table set and it is perhaps the prettiest magneto telephone which has ever been designed. It is entirely self, contained, except for the local battery, which is accommodated in a battery box. The permanent magnets of the generator form the support upon which the instrument rests, and the magneto bell is fitted between the legs. The induction coil is placed above the magneto generator, and the microtelephone is carried on a cradle which actuates the gravity switch. The instrument is connected up by means of a flexible cord terminating in a connection strip which is fixed at a convenient point on a wall or table.