Original Vintage Telephones
From RMS WINDSOR CASTLE

Items from SS RITA (ex WINDSOR CASTLE, MARGARITA L)

Hand Piece 8.5 Inches Long
Base 5.5. Inches Wide By 4.5 Inches Tall
Original Ivory Colored Plastic Fitting
Union-Castle Line Materials and Hardware
Lanyard Phone Cords
Price: $95.00 USD plus shipping

A close up view of the hand piece and the phone off the hook. Photos and copyright Peter Knego 2006.

Of of the many items I went to Alang to retrieve from the former WINDSOR CASTLE, vintage phones were at the top of the list. For years, people have been asking me if I had any access to old ship telephones. Well, finally, now I do.

These beautifully archaic fixtures are heavyily constructed and seem as though they would have been from an era long before the WINDSOR CASTLE entered service in 1960. These are not all that different from phones made for the QUEEN MARY of 1936, although they are not "Deco" style like the fixtures on the QUEEN. The phone handles say "TMC" and these particular units are side-mounting to be hung on a wall or bulkhead, if you prefer.

The back of a phone with French (?) instructions. Photo and copyright Peter Knego 2006.

Sadly, the ship's breaker was not only greedy but extremely careless with his quarry. He was asking a huge price for each phone, but at the same time, left most of them lying in the monsoonal mud, exposed in his yard. I inspected them carefully and only retrieved ones that were not damaged, leaving me with a limited quantity.