A.

Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

SHOP

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

Trans Stamp 1940s-1950s
Big Stamp 1950s
Fifties Stamp 1950s
Sixties Stamp 1960s
Thin Stamp 1970s

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

DRUMSHOW PICS

GALLERY

LINKS

FUN

CONTACT

A. ZILDJIAN CYMBAL STAMP CHRONOLOGY DATE TIMELINE

All Avedis Zildjian cymbals have their name stamped in its
bronze. But, we have 2 problems. 1. There is no official track
record of the stamps used by Zildjian. And 2. The proces of
stamping wasn't very accurate and the imprint varies. So, it is
difficult to exactly determine the period that certain stamps
were used. We know Avedis Zildjian started production in 1929
in 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 own
cymbals over the years and arranged them in a timeline to my
best knowledge. I will gladly support any further research.
Old cymbals. In the thirties Zildjian's most popular cymbal
measured between 8 and 14 inch, weight paperthin, easily
bendable. Drummers also used small but heavy brass cymbals.
In the fourties Bebop drummers began to use larger rides and
sizzle cymbals. Ride size ranged up to 30 inch and 16 inch
Hihats are known from this era. Cymbal weight stepped up with
popular music. In the fifties and later little inkstamps on odd
shaped models say SWISH, PANG or FLANGED HI-HATS,
MEDIUM RIDE etc. Some stories tell about drumshops stamping
cymbals according client preferences.
The first fifty years of A.Zildjian can be divided in 6 types as
seen below. This is also known as the 'pre-ink' period, so before
mid 1970s when Zildjian started the silkscreen ink stamps on
the bottom with the open ink-stamp logo.

FIRST STAMP 1929-1939 A.ZILDJIAN

1 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

12 1/4 inch A. Zildjian paper-thin
(353gram) cymbal and came with a Leedy
1937 trapset. Note the "J" in ZILDJIAN, not
a half circle round bottom as in later
stamps.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

A.Zildjian 8 inch paperthin splash. This is
one of the first stamps. Hard to see in this
photo is the "genuine turkish cymbals,
made in usa" but it's there, it's a complete
logo.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

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

2 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

Very rare case of a misprint. This picture
was send to me by email from a fellow
Zildjian afficionado. More examples of
mistakes in the stamp department like
double stamps, even double double stamps
(4) can be found on the internet
drumforums.

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

First Stamp 1920s-1930s

This stamp has the prewar arabic script and
a very low 'made in usa'. This Zildjian logo
is from a 14 inch (1038 gram) cymbal. Nice
hihat bottom for todays standards, but
maybe a 'ride' in 1941?

3 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

TRANS STAMP 1939-1955 A.ZILDJIAN

Trans Stamp 1940s-1950s

This is the second type Zildjian stamp, also
known as the Transition stamp. These
stamps pressed harder on the outside, the Z
and Co are deeper. This is a smaller logo.
Zildjian used these in the 1940s and '50s.
Notice the absence of the 3 dots in the
Arabic logo.

Trans Stamp 1940s-1950s

This is the second type Zildjian stamp, also
known as the Transition stamp. These
stamps pressed harder on the outside, the Z
and Co are deeper. This is a smaller logo.
Zildjian used these in the 1940s and '50s.
Notice the absence of the 3 dots in the
Arabic logo.

BIG STAMP 1955-1963 A.ZILDJIAN

4 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

Big Stamp 1950s

Here we have the hollow-block-lettering
Zildjian logo as on a '50s 21 inch med-thin
ride.

1950s Big Stamp 1950s

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

FIFTIES STAMP

5 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

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 SWISH
cymbal from the early 1970s. It is called the
thin stamp because the font of ZILDJIAN is
as thin as the other letters. The three dots
in the Arabic script are missing in this
stamp.

6 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

Here's another of the 1970s Thin Stamp, it's

missing the Made in USA or ... Made in
Canada?

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 a
brilliant finish.

Click for larger catalog scan

About the A.Zildjian & Cie stamp

The Gretsch Co. distributed K.Zildjians from
Turkey and A.Zildjians from Rumania in the
early 1900s. After Aram moved to the USA
in 1928 he and Avedis, start the Avedis
Zildjian company, Gretsch didn't use the
&Cie trademark and Avedis claimed it in
1958. A US court cancelled the
A.Zildjian&Cie, Constantinople trademark,
owned by Fred Gretsch Mfg Co, but it took
some more years before A.Zildjian could
actually use this stamp on their cymbals in
the 1970s.

7 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM

A. Zildjian Cymbal Stamp Timeline

http://www.hidehitters.com/cymbals/Zildjianstamps/timeline.html

The open ink stamp is found in a mid

seventies catalog. Zildjian didn't date their
catalogs at that time.
In the picture: Armand and son Rab
Zildjian. Click for larger format

Here's a seventies open ink script logo on a

K.Zildjian cymbal, Made in Istanbul, Turkey.
Somebody tried to polish it off, but still
visible.

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

8 of 8

5/8/14, 12:40 PM