I just picked this fan out of a shop on the way to Nashville last week. It is a Alternating Current Fan Motor according to the brass tag on top. There are 4 patent dates, the most recent of which is June 25, 1901. Made by General Electric Co. The first one it took a minor push to get the blades going, but it wanted to go immediately. The second time we plugged it in, it took off immediately. I did not oil or grease it… It is 100% as found!!! The blades appear a little bent. The blades measure just about 12 inches across from one side to the edge of the opposite blade. There is a switch in the front of the base, but the back has an open hole… When I took the original base cover off, I found all of the cords cut for some reason. I took the fan to my local “fix it” guy to plug it in. He attached right to the two posts on the back of the motor. Just to the right of the right post there is a crack in the iron. This crack is noticeable around the bottom edge of the back plate and on the first “Y” in the casting above the edge, but appears to go no further. There are no other chips or cracks anywhere that I can see. Please enlarge all the pictures! Thanks and good luck!! The item “ANTIQUE GE GENERAL ELECTRIC 1901 PANCAKE FAN CAST IRON BRASS BLADES NEEDS WORK” is in sale since Tuesday, June 14, 2016. This item is in the category “Collectibles\Kitchen & Home\Electric Fans”. The seller is “hat-trick” and is located in Harlan, Iowa. This item can be shipped to United States.