The Holy Grail of Retro Phones

I couldn't believe what I found an an estate auction this weekend.  (P.S. The estate sale totally reenergized my vintage vibe.)  Anyway, I got some great finds that I'll share soon, along with some finds from thrifting last week that haven't made it to the blog yet.  However, in the box lots at the auction I found a box that contained a bunch of old rotary dial phones.  It was obvious that they had been stored in a barn for a long time - they were filthy.  However, digging through the crate, I found a phone that almost caused me to have a stroke.  Along with a vintage Stromberg-Carlson wall phone and a white Trimline rotary phone like my grandma had when  I was a kid, there was something bright red poking through.  That's when I discovered this:

A vintage Ericofon!  I was floored.  It took a while to get it cleaned up, but it looks so amazing.  I wish that I was able to wire it up and use it, but it is designed to be hardwired into the house, and I don't have that ability.  I may see if there is an adapter available.  If nothing else, it looks amazing sitting on a side table in the living room!  These are pretty rare, at least more so than the standard phones that Bell systems installed in homes, this is the first one that I've seen in person.  I also know that they can sell for pretty high prices on eBay.  So, I felt like the $9 I paid for the whole box was a decent deal.  I could have probably gotten it cheaper, but the way box lots work, you bid in a price, then you pick how many boxes you want for that price.  I don't think anybody else probably really wanted a box full of dirty old phones, but I wasn't taking any chances!

A little history on the Ericofon is available on the following website ericofon.com.  It really has an interesting history!

Here are a few more pictures for your viewing pleasure.

Hope you have a great Monday!