BAUSCH Older German Violin Bow- Leipzig circa 1910-1920

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For over 250 years, German luthiers supplied musicians not only with serviceable and affordable instruments but also their bows. This bow is from the late 19th century. In the 1800’s the violin and piano were the most popular forms of musical entertainment. To meet the demand for string instruments, a thriving industry developed in a remote area of eastern Germany on the Czech border, a region known as Western Bohemia. The center of this instrument making industry was the town of Markneukirchen in the state of Saxony. It was by no means a new industry for the area. The area had been the center of German violin making since the early 1600’s and many of these violins and bows were made and shipped to the West. These makers in Markneukirchen and Klingenthal (about 30 miles north) and many surrounding villages had mostly anonymous skilled craftsmen turning out simple but well-made instruments and bows. The elite makers of that day in Saxony would have been trained in and around the Markneukirchen area and then would have moved on to work in larger cities such as Berlin, Dresden, Munich, and Prague.

Our bow is a pernambuco stick, is round in section, and mounted in nickel silver. The Bausch stamp is on the player’s side of the stick above the frog. Germany is stamped on the butt of the bow. The pernambuco wood has some good fight to the stick and the color is orange/brown. I had the bow in my workshop and gave it a good cleaning, replaced the nickel silver winding, and added new thumb leather. The frog is original, with smooth edges from natural playing wear. The heel plate is one-piece and pinned in place. The lining in the frog is also held in place by very small pins. The button solid and the mother-of-pearl slide is way above standard pearl; it is beautiful with pink, green, and blue color. This is a classic bow that has stood the test of time and will be a fantastic bow for a violinist for many more generations.

Weight fully haired 59.2 grams