• Piano Value Estimate

Depending on the manufacturer, the serial number is located in any of a number of places on the piano. It may be necessary to open the lid, or it may be on the exterior.

Piano Value Estimate

In a vertical or upright piano, the serial number is frequently posted inside the lid on a gold plate. The number typically ranges in length from four to seven digits, and some serial numbers include letters.

Other serial numbers are stamped on the back of the piano. Often, the serial number may be imprinted into the wood of the casework, or it may be conveniently located on the top edge of the end of an upright piano. Many serial numbers are so well hidden that they are extremely difficult to find, and some pianos simply do not have serial numbers. Besides their serial numbers, many pianos have other numbers engraved or stamped in them. These figures might include the stock, model or case number. For example, in our 1904 Packard upright, after opening the lid and looking from the top down on the front panel, there appears a hand-carved 4-digit number (xxxx). The same number appears much lower on a board further back.

Also, on the left side at the top, a brass connector reads 'PAT. There is a black stenciled serial number (95 836) in the center of the soundboard. Underneath the piano bench is a hand-carved number (3001) which matches the style of the board numbers inside (xxxx).Keys and actions are usually made by separate firms, and have their own numbers which can sometimes be a guide to the date of a piano.Very few serial numbers consist of an actual year. Instead they are a grouping of numbers that give a general indication of the date of the piano's manufacture. For example, during the period between 1950 and 1960, the Fazer Company assigned each of its pianos a serial number in the range between 800 and 3285.