Violin Forum/Message Board

JessicaNskates · Junior Member Joined: 22 Aug 2011 Posts: 2

Hi, recently my husbands great aunt died and we found this old family violin when going through her belongings, we have no idea what we are looking at. I know it is in very rough condition but we don't know if it is worth restoring or what the cost on restoration would even be. There is a label inside of it which reads

Andreas Amati Fecit Cremonae Anno 16

and a label stuck on top of that which reads

Manufactured in Germany

So basically we know it is an Amati replica, from Germany, but we don't know when it was made or anything else. Any information or help we would be very thankful for.~~

Jessica

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10150756648020184&set=a.10150756644820184.715064.583190183&type=1

Chet Bishop · Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 11:09 am Post subject:

Well...the sticker puts it between WWI and WWII, I think... beyond that I don't know. I can't open your facebook thingy.

There were hundreds of thousands of German violins imported before WWI, but I don't think they would have had that sticker...and after WWII, if memory serves, they switched to specifying WEST Germany.

Some historian here will set me straight, I hope.

Chet
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FiddleDoug · Member Joined: 08 Sep 2007 Posts: 227 Location: Hilton, NY

Actually, the McKinley Tariff Act of 1891 required the country of origin on the label, so it could be any time between 1891 and WWII. I tried to open your link, and couldn't get it to work. In any case, you'll need to take it to a luthier for evaluation. A good luthier will give you an idea of what it's worth, and how much it will cost to restore it. Don't get your hopes up. There were perhaps millions of these instruments imported, and the quality can range anywhere from very nice, to pretty poor(most of them).
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Chet Bishop · Posted: Fri Aug 26, 2011 7:13 pm Post subject:

OK, this is maybe a tad off topic, but maybe you know, Doug...when did Germany quit being called the "German Empire" and go to being called Germany? It has not been Germany all that long. That's why I wasn't sure about the earliest date. Even the "German Empire" title was not very old.
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Mat Roop · Posted: Sun Aug 28, 2011 11:56 pm Post subject:

German empire 1871-1918
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/German_Empire
Cheers, Mat

Chet Bishop · Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2011 10:42 am Post subject:

That's kind of what I thought...so wouldn't that sticker place it between the wars?
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Dave Chandler · Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2011 8:07 pm Post subject: Made in Germany

Before the McKinley Tariff Act of 1891, there was the British "Merchandise Marks Act 1887" to distinguish (and hopefully discourage) British society from buying foreign, thinking that it would bolster local makers. The German makers soon found though that it actually promoted German made violins because the public found that they were (or perceived to be) superior, and the label became a mark of distinction. Then there's the "forbidden fruit" effect that may have been in play as well. More and more manufacturers voluntarily labeled their violins "Manufactured in Germany", and even during WWI, when the purchase of German products was not just discouraged but forbidden in Britain, the market for German made instruments (not just violins) continued to grow.

So this could be between 1887 and 1945, a span of 60 years. Here in America, however, I would think demand must have fallen off after 1929 as we entered the great depression years. That would cut the range to 42 year period 1887 to 1929.
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Southern Violin Association

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Chet Bishop · Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 12:12 pm Post subject:

Actually my question was the wording-- not the fact that the sticker was there: did they say "Manufactured in Germany" when Germany was not called "Germany" (as opposed to "manufactured in the German Empire" or something)? Or was this a simplified term for the German Empire before it was called "Germany"?

There were lots of violins manufactured in what is now Czechoslovakia, too, but that name did not exist prior to a certain date, so that name dates instruments...do you see what I am getting at?

I'm not disagreeing at all, just trying to clarify.
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Dave Chandler · Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2011 3:15 pm Post subject: Made in Germany

We are wandering about a bit, but ITS ALL GOOD.

Looks like a good topic for a dissertation.
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Dave in the Blue Ridge
Southern Violin Association

"Success is the ability to go from one failure to the next with no loss of enthusiasm" Winston Churchill

"I took the road less travelled, and now I don't know where I am." Marco Polo

FiddleDoug · Member Joined: 08 Sep 2007 Posts: 227 Location: Hilton, NY

Hate to continue drifting on this, but I've never seen anything labeled "Made in the German Empire".
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Dave Chandler · Posted: Sun Sep 04, 2011 5:13 pm Post subject: Manufactured in Germany

I can't imagine the British Isles or the United States requiring that the Germans marks their instruments "Made in the German Empire".
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Dave in the Blue Ridge
Southern Violin Association

"Success is the ability to go from one failure to the next with no loss of enthusiasm" Winston Churchill

"I took the road less travelled, and now I don't know where I am." Marco Polo