1. First Stamp 1920s-1930s2. Trans Stamp 1940s-1950s3. Big Stamp 1950s4. Fifties Stamp 1950s5. Sixties Stamp 1960s6. Thin Stamp 1970s

A. ZILDJIAN CYMBAL STAMP CHRONOLOGY DATE TIMELINE

All Avedis Zildjian cymbals have their name stamped in itsbronze. But, we have 2 problems. 1. There is no official trackrecord of the stamps used by Zildjian. And 2. The proces ofstamping wasn't very accurate and the imprint varies. So, it isdifficult to exactly determine the period that certain stampswere used. We know Avedis Zildjian started production in 1929in the Quincy, Massachusetts USA.

This is a rough guide to help estimate the age of your cymbal.There is no book, so far, so I took some pictures of my owncymbals over the years and arranged them in a timeline to mybest knowledge. I will gladly support any further research.

Old cymbals. In the thirties Zildjian's most popular cymbalmeasured between 8 and 14 inch, weight paperthin, easilybendable. Drummers also used small but heavy brass cymbals.In the fourties Bebop drummers began to use larger rides andsizzle cymbals. Ride size ranged up to 30 inch and 16 inchHihats are known from this era. Cymbal weight stepped up withpopular music. In the fifties and later little inkstamps on oddshaped models say SWISH, PANG or FLANGED HI-HATS,MEDIUM RIDE etc. Some stories tell about drumshops stampingcymbals according client preferences.

The first fifty years of A.Zildjian can be divided in 6 types asseen below. This is also known as the 'pre-ink' period, so beforemid 1970s when Zildjian started the silkscreen ink stamps onthe bottom with the open ink-stamp logo.

FIRST STAMP 1929-1939 A.ZILDJIAN

SHOP DRUMSHOW PICS GALLERY LINKS FUN CONTACT

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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First Stamp 1920s-1930s

12 1/4 inch A. Zildjian paper-thin(353gram) cymbal and came with a Leedy1937 trapset. Note the "J" in ZILDJIAN, nota half circle round bottom as in laterstamps.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

A.Zildjian 8 inch paperthin splash. This isone of the first stamps. Hard to see in thisphoto is the "genuine turkish cymbals,made in usa" but it's there, it's a completelogo.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

Paper-Thin A. Zildjian 12 3/4 inch cymbal,456 gram. Pre-war cymbals have thestraighter Pre-Round-Bottom "J".After WW2 A. Zildjian used the RoundBottom "J".

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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First Stamp 1920s-1930s

Very rare case of a misprint. This picturewas send to me by email from a fellowZildjian afficionado. More examples ofmistakes in the stamp department likedouble stamps, even double double stamps(4) can be found on the internetdrumforums.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

This stamp has the prewar arabic script anda very low 'made in usa'. This Zildjian logois from a 14 inch (1038 gram) cymbal. Nicehihat bottom for todays standards, butmaybe a 'ride' in 1941?

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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TRANS STAMP 1939-1955 A.ZILDJIAN

Trans Stamp 1940s-1950s

This is the second type Zildjian stamp, alsoknown as the Transition stamp. Thesestamps pressed harder on the outside, the Zand Co are deeper. This is a smaller logo.Zildjian used these in the 1940s and '50s.Notice the absence of the 3 dots in theArabic logo.

Trans Stamp 1940s-1950s

This is the second type Zildjian stamp, alsoknown as the Transition stamp. Thesestamps pressed harder on the outside, the Zand Co are deeper. This is a smaller logo.Zildjian used these in the 1940s and '50s.Notice the absence of the 3 dots in theArabic logo.

BIG STAMP 1955-1963 A.ZILDJIAN

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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Big Stamp 1950s

Here we have the hollow-block-letteringZildjian logo as on a '50s 21 inch med-thinride.

1950s Big Stamp 1950s

Here we have the hollow-block-letteringZildjian logo as on a '50s 20 inch ride.(2083 gram)

FIFTIES STAMP

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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SIXTIES STAMP 1960s

1960s logo of a 13 inch hihat top cymbal.

SEVENTIES THIN STAMP 1970s

Thin Stamp 1970s

This stamp was found on a 16 inch SWISHcymbal from the early 1970s. It is called thethin stamp because the font of ZILDJIAN isas thin as the other letters. The three dotsin the Arabic script are missing in thisstamp.

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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Here's another of the 1970s Thin Stamp, it'smissing the Made in USA or ... Made inCanada?

OTHER A. ZILDJIAN STAMPS

This stamp can be found on Brilliant A.Zildjian cymbals in the 1970s and 1980s.Most of them are a little heavier and had abrilliant finish.

Click for larger catalog scan

About the A.Zildjian & Cie stamp

The Gretsch Co. distributed K.Zildjians fromTurkey and A.Zildjians from Rumania in theearly 1900s. After Aram moved to the USAin 1928 he and Avedis, start the AvedisZildjian company, Gretsch didn't use the&Cie trademark and Avedis claimed it in1958. A US court cancelled theA.Zildjian&Cie, Constantinople trademark,owned by Fred Gretsch Mfg Co, but it tooksome more years before A.Zildjian couldactually use this stamp on their cymbals inthe 1970s.

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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The open ink stamp is found in a midseventies catalog. Zildjian didn't date theircatalogs at that time.

In the picture: Armand and son RabZildjian. Click for larger format

Here's a seventies open ink script logo on aK.Zildjian cymbal, Made in Istanbul, Turkey.Somebody tried to polish it off, but stillvisible.

Winnie's Drumkit Drumschool & Vintage Drum Collection Amsterdam www.HideHitters.com

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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