F. K. Voirin Pernambuco Trade Viola Bow – West Germany circa 1950

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Stamped:

We have a German trade bow that is a lightweight viola bow. It is pernambuco, octagonal in section, and nickel mounted. The bow was given a French name to sell the stick right after World War II, though it still has the W GERMANY on the butt of the bow directly behind the frog stamped on the stick. This was a normal practice for bow making shops for 20 years after the war. This practice gradually ceased by 1970.

I have given this bow a new tip, reworked the frog, and replaced the winding and leathers. The frog is a Parisian eye model, and it has a 90-degree heel. The pearl eyes in this model frog lean to the small side, being 4.0 mm. The lining is fastened with two tiny bronze screws. The balance of this bow is in the lower third of the stick, frog side.

This bow may be perfect to bridge violin and viola playing using the same bow. The pernambuco is good, tight grained, semi firm, and incremented well from the head to the winding. German workmanship in a trade bow.

Weight fully haired 66.1 grams