VOIRIN Stamped Excellent German Violin Bow circa 1925-1935 – Tremendous Stick!

click picture to enlarge

Stamped:

German bow makers after World War I were struggling to sell their sticks. During the 1800’s many German shops even left off the maker’s name and origin on the stick. They resorted to naming their bows with famous maker’s names or famous player’s names from France and Italy. They were trying to hide the fact that they were made in Germany. Many players don’t even look near the frog for the country-of-origin stamp. The VOIRIN name would have aided in selling the bow outright or the stick might have just been placed in a violin outfit and headed out for sale at a music store. This bow is stamped “F. N. VOIRIN,” you don’t get a much better name than the famous Parisian maker. This bow was made in Germany, not France, and I don’t know who specifically made the bow or to what workshop it is attributed. The stick has been laying in a large box at my home with hundreds of German bows in it. I brought a bunch of bows over to the shop in September of 2025 to work on. The bow has been in my collection for close to 45 years.

Pernambuco wood bows are what are being sought after by many players considering what has happed to the specie in the country of Brazil. The wood only grows in Brazil and has been used in bow making for 280 years. For the last 4 years the Brazil government stopped all sales of the wood and even bows that were completed by makers in Brazil. Makers have been scrambling to discover new woods and alternatives. Hence why I have decided to get all my bows in the workshop restored and ready for the showroom. As recently as January 2026 some of the restrictions have been lifted. Restorations on my bow collection can take many hours and/or weeks. Much of my work gets put on the back burner when customer violins and bows need to be completed.

This wood in this bow is a beautiful orange/brown color fine-grain pernambuco. This wood is old stock that I’m sure was growing in Brazil to become a mature tree during the 1800s. The stick is pernambuco, octagonal in section, and nickel silver mounted. The stick is nice enough that it should have been considered a stick to receive sterling silver. The bow is firm in its makeup, easy to handle and control on the strings. The head is ivory, original, and the frog is a Parisian eye model with nickel mounts. The color in the slide and small eyes have traditional hues of green, pink, and blue. The heel is one-piece and is secured with pins. The three-piece button and the lining on the frog are also secured with pin work. This bow was made by no mere apprentice or young journeyman. The bow is well made, excellent workmanship! I have replaced the winding with new nickel silver wire and a leather thumb grip. Everything else is original to the bow. If you’re looking for an older bow, nice age, German detail, and a stick that is incremented thinner than most, this may be an awesome choice. The condition is very good to excellent. A professional may just fall in love with this stick. It is off the charts nice, balanced, light in it feel and gram weight. The strength is another Wow! Don’t let the nickel silver mounts make you think twice on this stick. This is a fine bow.

Weight fully haired 57.0 grams