19th Century Guitars
Click on any picture for a larger version.
A French Guitar
This guitar is probably French and was made in the early half of the nineteenth century. Note that the fingerboard does not go over the soundboard. It arrived in the workshop with broken bars, many cracks, a large split along the joint of the soundboard and no peg head or pegs. The owner chose to have the instrument restored to playing condition and asked for turned wooden tuning pegs that were probably on the instrument when it was made.
The guitar as it arrived, repairs in the workshop and the new peghead and pegs. |
19th Century Guitar
Above the repaired guitar. Bridges often come off, but usually not a as much wood is torn from the soundboard. The guitar shows many charachteristics of the 19th century but also evidence of being a less expensive instrument. The fingerboard is not ebony but stained maple and the white wood has begun to show through the stain.
The back appears to be mahogony or rosewood but is again maple. It is painted brown and combed to give a grained effect. One light spot can be seen where the paint has worn away. Although inexpensive materials have been used, the craftsmansip is of a high quality except for the head. On the head, note the shoulders (at the bottom of the picture) are different shapes and that the strings do not lie nicely over the ramps. The woodworking is crude and this could replace an earlier head. |
Swedish Guitar 1896
Only minor repairs were needed on this guitar. The guitar has been in the same family for over 100 years and was brought by the family from Sweden. Note the slanted frets. Click on the small soundhole above and the enlarged lightened picture allows the brands inside the guitar to be read. The makers initials are KB, in an ellipse, and the date is 4/12 96 or April 12, 1896. |
A Dubious GuitarOpening the case, there is an interesting looking guitar, obviously 19th century. It fits the case well, has a scalloped fingerboard with mother of pearl frets and very interesting decoration.
Photographed out of the case the angle of the head to the neck looks unusually severe and the bridge is very thick.
The Baker tuning machines look authentic. I have seen guitars by Lois Panormo with these machines. Here it is astonishing that the machines are too large for the head of the guitar. I know of no reputable maker, of any era, that would fit machine heads to a head that was too small.
The feature which makes this guitar almost unrepairable is the fact that the neck angles down. The strings will not be high enough over the fingerboard. Perhaps the very thick bridge is an attempt to compensate.
In order to repair this guitar, the neck will have to be separated from the body and the neck/body joint reset. This will cause some damage to the scalloped finger board, which is so thin that it probably cannot be removed without destroying it.
This appears to be a guitar inexpertly created from various guitar pieces.
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