DODD Violin Bow – Markneukirchen/Saxony circa 1900

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We have a remarkable older Markneukirchen bow. The pernambuco is sweet, darker, and older; harvested in Brazil in the mid-1800’s and found its way to the famous German area known for its violin and bow making for almost three centuries. The bow has the famous English maker’s name Dodd. When you are going to copy someone’s work you should copy the best. John Dodd (1752 -1839) was born and grew up in and around London. He was a famous British bow maker and renowned for his exceptional craftsmanship. He was a contemporary of François Tourte, the French bowmaker who revolutionized the modern French bow of today. John Dodd bows were highly regarded for their outstanding ability to produce great tone, off a string projection, and deep strength in the overall core of an instrument. Dodd originally began as a young kid pursuing a career as a gunstock fitter, then a scale maker for the hand currency of the day in London. These trades both required outstanding precision craftsmanship that would become evident in his bow making skills. Dodd found his calling in bowmaking and began this new art in the 1780s, in which he excelled. A real John Dodd violin bow in today’s market will fetch 15K-35K.

Our stick is a replica in Dodd style and 1-2 mm shorter than a standard modern violin bow. A Markneukirchen stick, not an English bow, yet showing many traits of an English Dodd bow. The head or tip of the bow is erect and almost a squatty hammer type of tip. The head is masculine in its appearance. The pernambuco wood chosen is tight grain, firm, and has a head that was handled a lot as well as the frog area. The bow has normal wear you would see on a 100 plus year old bow. The handling area, because of playing, has grown darker in its color because of the natural playing wear. The rest of the bow has an orange/brown color and the stick is round section. The frog is sterling silver mounted with a full-length mother of pearl slide and a heel of sterling silver. The heel and lining are affixed to the ebony frog with pin work. The winding is the original as I found the bow, a real whalebone winding with a new goat thumb leather. The frog is a Parisian eye model. I replaced the pearl eyes, and the end button has a solid silver cap with a double turn in the collar. The bow is in very good condition and is a player. Someone took care of this bow and used it to boot. A great stick, easy feel worn beautifully, and the bow is ready for another generation, all restored and ready to find a new home.

Weight fully haired 55.0 grams