A Kenna B (ca. 1840) set is up for sale. The set had surfaced in a Chicago antiques shop back in the 1970s.
The set - keyed chanter, 3 drones, two regulators (one is definitely a later addition by Ned White ca. 1870!) - is clearly stamped KENNA ORIGINAL MAKER. The chanter is recently reeded (within last five years) and looks pristine (no throat job to open it up).
Please PM me with interest. I will be passing along the contact directly to the Seller, so please ensure that you are prepared to discuss a price at least at the level a ‘new’ set of pipes would cost.
This set is one in a million. I don’t have pics at this time.
Joseph - sounds like he’s being as specific as he can on the price.
Jim - Certainly sounds like a rare opportunity. I hope it goes to a good home. Photos would be nice for us mere mortals to look at. If you get any, I’m sure we’d all appreciate if you could post them.
There may be a speculator involved in this sale if it is indeed a recent set that sold for much less than the amount a new set would sell for…but who really knows!
I have more high confidence that this set is the ‘real deal’ as the stock and chanter are marked - really exciting when you see that KENNA. The biggest challenge of ‘old’ sets is the condition, especially has it been modified. This chanter has not been modified (redrilled, etc) over the years as is so often the case.
The Seller has the chanter reeded and a tape of it being played.
The set stands on its own and a serious buyer would be prudent to have a closer look (think of it as saving on shipping!). I had photos but some were deleted. I’ll try to post a pic of the chanter (half of it) later.
Why the mystery on the price? I am not setting the price as the seller is handling all of that. I have advised the seller on what pipes have sold for in the past few years as I always do that if asked by anyone.
This Kenna opportunity is as good as it gets with pipes of note, though. I believe there is more Kenna in museums than in private hands.