Fine Swiss Viola Bow Made For W. M. & SON – Philadelphia circa 1950

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This is a fine pernambuco viola bow made for the William Moennig firm in the 1950’s by the famous Swiss firm of FINKEL. The bow is handmade and was imported to sell at the Moennig firm, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for professional players in the 1950’s. The Finkel workshop in Switzerland made bows for many of the finest shops in the US, Canada, England, and France. I’ve had the bow in my collection here at the shop for close to 20 years, now finally restored to playing condition.

The bow is pernambuco, round in section, and mounted in sterling silver. I have gone over the entire stick more than one time to make sure this bow is in fantastic shape ready for a serious player. The bow has a new tip facial, new sterling winding, and new leather lapping and thumb grip. The ebony frog is blind eye with no pin work or tiny screws holding he heel and lining. The tolerances are so fine and spot on. I’ve enjoyed studying this stick and all of its nuances, incrementations in the carving, and the angle of the head, which is strong almost axe-like in its appearance. The ferrule of the frog protrudes by 1.5 millimeters past the above tongue/throat. The heel is one-piece, and the ferrule has a slightly higher round than I find in most German workmanship. All a Wow! in my book. The stick is firm with some flex. I love the bow, the workmanship and the pernambuco are choice. The color in the pernambuco is a deep orange/brown, just oiled, and the grain is fine: truly an exquisite piece of wood. This bow is above nice, ready for another serious player looking for a choice bow.

Weight fully haired 71.2 grams