Rickenbacker A-22 Model Lap Steel Electric Guitar (1933) S/N 233

A-22 Electro Hawaiian Guitar (nicknamed the "Frying Pan" for its distinctive shape). 

One of the most historically important of all 20th Century guitars.

It was the first commercially successful electrified string instrument

In good working condition.  The gold finish has worn on the top but is clean on the back.  Comes with the original black hardshell case

The number of A-22s is small but not as rare as the longer scale A-25. The A-22 was marketed as a Hawaiian guitar, but the neck is round-backed so theoretically the instrument could have been played Spanish style, something designer George Beauchamp alluded to in the original patent application.  The pickup is the famous Rickenbacker horseshoe unit and is adjustable overall for height with a knurled knob at each end. The slotted headstock has a brass metal name plate that reads "Rickenbacker Electro, Los Angeles" with "RE" between mirrored lightning bolts. The entire instrument was extremely futuristic for the 1930's, a high deco minimalist design fabricated from a single piece of cast aluminum with a hollow space inside. This body was finished in a fragile gold enamel wash that is amazingly intact in this example.