Thomassin A Paris Workshop Violin Bow circa 1905-1920

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Stamped:

A French workshop violin bow stamped A. Thomassin A Paris made the early 20th century. Claude Auguste Thomassin (1865-1942) was born in Mirecourt, France, grew up in a family of saddle, bow, and violin makers. Claude developed into one of the most highly acclaimed bow makers of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He apprenticed as a bow maker in the workshop of Charles Bazin, whose reputation was highly regarded throughout Mirecourt in the late 19th century. At the age of eighteen, after completing his apprenticeship with Bazin, Thomassin relocated to Paris where he began working for the firm of Gand & Bernardel. Thomassin remained at Gand & Bernardel until 1901, when the firm was taken over by another business. He then established his own shop on the Rue de Paris in Paris. While he continued to produce bows for his former employers and other reputable luthiers, his output was largely focused on his own bows, which were branded “C. Thomassin À Paris.”

This workshop trade bow was not made by Thomassin himself but by one of the many workers working in a shop in the town of Mirecourt. If this was made by Claude Auguste it would have been branded differently and go for 9 times as much. This is still a very nice bow with nice handling characteristics and balance. The stick is darker chocolate color pernambuco, with sterling silver fittings, and is round in section. We have given the bow a new tip, a new silver winding, and a new leather thumb. The frog carries with it pin work, not screws, and the pearl stands out on the slide.

Weight fully haired 61.0 grams