C. Chagas- Brasil Sterling Silver Mounted Cello Bow 2026

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Stamped:

Claudio Roberto Carlesso Chagas was born in the city of Joao Neiva, Brasil (Portuguese spelling) in 1973. He began his journey in making bows at 20 years old by first roughing out sticks for other bowmakers and in 1997 he graduated to making bows himself. I am told that you will not find a dull knife or plane on his bench. I like that. I spend time sharpening and tuning up my tools, but I can’t say for sure everything is perfect. Both tools, knives and planes, need to be razor sharp, perfect edges for making fine bows. Claudio is a maker in the firm of Arcos Brasil. He has two young brothers who also make bows for us here at the shop. Arcos employs over 12 bow makers. Claudio is known by Mr. Judd for his knife work and incrementations by the centimeter on his bows. The maker just knows and feels how to make the stick tapered and sleek behind the head. The maker progresses to the gauge (width diameter of the egg shape) he wants for each stick. Bow making is an art and he feels what the wood will handle for each bow.

Ipe wood grows and is harvested in Brasil. Ipe and pernambuco have always come from Brazil. The ebony used in cutting the frog only grows in Africa and certain parts of India. Chagas is a skilled maker and takes his time in creating great sticks for us at the shop. All hand work. You should see all the violin and viola bows he has made too. Claudio’s bows are stamped “C. CHAGAS – BRASIL.”

This stick is firm and round in section. The specie name, Ipe, is also stamped on the butt of the bow so there is no confusion with the other specie in making bows – pernambuco. It is an orange/brown colored stick that leans slightly to the darker brown side. The finish is only oiled and shows good clarity. The last 24.0 cm of the bow is in octagonal section for the bow to accept the frog. The bow is mounted in sterling silver, and the fittings are held in place with pin work. The frog is a Parisian eye model with a pearl slide and eyes that ooze with light hues. Beautiful. The winding is sterling with a leather thumb grip to capture the silver at the frog end. The bow is excellent new condition, just received into the shop in 2026. The ebony frog has gorgeous dark color and is completed with a three-piece end button in sterling and ebony with a pearl end. A modern bow, true, but everything new that was great had to start new. We have plenty of older 70-to-80-year-old bows. They were excellent new bows at one time. This is a fantastic sterling mounted stick, ready to produce awesome sounds from your cello.

Weight fully haired 82.3 grams