Non-Stamped Early 20th Century Sterling Silver Violin Bow – Markneukirchen circa 1900-1920 – CURRENTLY OUT ON TRIAL –

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We have an excellent older violin bow from the Markneukirchen area of Germany. The bow has GERMANY in small caps branded on a stick facet behind the frog.

The pernambuco is medium dark orange/brown color, in octagonal section. The frog is made with silver pins in combination with tiny, tapered pins in the plate of the frog. I’m taken aback by the handmade frog, a slightly smaller frog for your hand, the pin work, dark ebony with single 5.0 mm. mother-of-pearl eyes to finish off the smaller look. The button is three pieces and concludes with a mother-of-pearl eye.

This is an older fine bow that deserved to have the makers name on the bow. Bow making workshops handled the branding of their sticks differently back in the last half of the 1800’s and the early 1900’s; this was not uncommon. The stick is beautiful, which is the heart and soul where you start as a bow maker. This bow sits at a higher level because sterling was used, not nickel, in the mounting of the frog and the winding. Pernambuco wood aids in the sound and projection of your violin. Pernambuco bows are in high demand here at our shop. Subtle differences in the wood are so important in a bow because they affect the playing qualities of a finished bow. Making a bow that will create the best sound off an instrument requires skill and craftsmanship at a very high level.

Bow making is one of the few remaining artistic crafts that have not been replaced with machinery. Eash piece of pernambuco has its own unique attributes, including strength, density, and tonal quality that the maker must consider as they shape a bow. The wood must be able to bend in the presence of heat and then retain its shape when cooled. Pernambuco ‘s strength and flexibility result in excellent memory. Players are looking for balance in the bows handling, stability in the piece of wood, connection with the strings, and a responsiveness that allows the bow to feel like and extension of their arm. Your bow must also articulate complex bowing passages with ease. Yes, the bow is so important to your playing. The stick has age, its pernambuco harvested in the 1800’s, carved into a bow in the early 1900’s and finished in sterling silver mounts.

Weight fully haired 58.7 grams