Name/Title
"Victory" Tremolo HarmonicaEntry/Object ID
2025.13.1Description
Tremolo (double-row) mouth-organ harmonica. The visible face is a nickel/chrome-plated sheet-metal cover plate, engraved and stipple-stamped with the brand and origin, held by a shaped end clamp secured with a slotted screw at each end. A red-painted wood comb shows at the ends and along the base, with a long row of double holes (tremolo configuration) on the lower edge (a comparable Smithsonian example has 14 double holes / 28 reeds). The cover is heavily scratched from use.Use
Belonged to Yasiel Pavon, who brought it with him to the United States when he emigrated in 1996.Context
The "Victory" harmonica is a well-known mid-20th-century Shanghai export product; comparable examples are held by museums and are widely dated by collectors to the 1960s.Collection
Yasiel Pavon collectionAcquisition
Accession
2025.13Acquisition Method
GiftMade/Created
Place
City
ShanghaiCountry
People's Republic of ChinaContinent
AsiaEdition
VictoryNotes
Manufacturer: an unidentified Shanghai harmonica manufacturer under the "Victory" brand (the specific factory is not established; the Smithsonian records its Victory example as by an unknown Shanghai maker) — attribution tentative.
Date: circa 1960s–1970s — collector consensus favors the 1960s; museum cataloging lists the date as undetermined. Tentative.Inscription/Signature/Marks
Type
EngravingLocation
topTranscription
Victory Harmonica
Shanghai ChinaLanguage
EnglishMaterial/Technique
EtchedNotes
Cover plate, engraved/stipple-stamped (with translations in brackets): two Chinese characters in stippled relief at left — the brand name, not confidently transcribed from this image (tentative) — accompanied by smaller characters reading "口琴" [harmonica] (tentative); "Victory" in script; "HARMONICA"; "中國 上海 SHANGHAI, CHINA" [China · Shanghai]; and a model/catalog code at lower left, only partially legible, approximately "HG 521" / "UC 521" (first characters ambiguous; compare the Smithsonian example coded "UCO30"). Numerous surface scratches (use wear).Parts
(1) nickel/chrome-plated metal cover plate(s); (2) red-painted wood comb; (3) brass reed plates (inferred, not directly visible); (4) two shaped end clamps with screws.Materials
Material
MetalMaterial Notes
Nickel/chrome-plated steel or brass (cover and clamps); painted wood (comb); brass reeds (inferred); steel screws.Relationships
Related Person or Organization
Person or Organization
Yasiel PavonNotes
ownerRelated Places
Place
City
Las TunasCountry
CubaRegion
Caribbean, Central AmericaNotes
acquisition, usePlace
City
West New YorkState/Province
New JerseyCountry
U.S.A.Continent
North AmericaNotes
useResearch Notes
Notes
The Smithsonian's National Museum of American History holds a comparable Victory model harmonica made by an unknown maker in Shanghai, China, of undetermined date, with 14 double holes and 28 reeds, a red painted wood comb and metal cover plates, engraved with a code, Chinese characters, "Victory HARMONICA SHANGHAI CHINA".Created By
María A. Cabrera ArúsCreate Date
March 31, 2022Updated By
María A. Cabrera ArúsUpdate Date
June 16, 2026