> From: "[EMAIL PROTECTED]" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Date: Thu, 26 Oct 2006 11:00:13 -0400 > To: [email protected] > Subject: [CITTERN] recent threads > > Howdy Folks, > > I'm on the road at the moment and don't have regular access to the internet > so I haven't been able to keep up with the > recent threads - I haven't even been able to read everything yet! > > Two things I wanted to say: > > RE Ron's (beautiful) cittern: Has anyone mentioned fake labels?
I implied it, but then I don't know if that particular maker would have been worth the effort, a coveted name or something. The fact that the instrument sat for 25 years unsold in a California music store might indicate that others had their suspicions too? I don't know. The instrument is good looking, overall, I agree. It's just the date that puzzles me. > A few > years in Evora we saw several "ancient" citterns, > many of which were 19th and 20th century fakes, and many of them were > similar to the instruments shown in one of > the early links supplied in the thread (not very helpful, I know...). I > have to agree that the binding on Ron's cittern is > rather bright, but I'm not at all sure that that is decisive for dating it. I have in the last few days seen some early A-type Gibson mandolins (c.1905-10) with bright white top binding, only half the thickness of Ron's, but bright white on the outer edge nonetheless. I've yet to see solid, thick, all white (verses a sandwich of strips of alternating material or colors, white/black/white or herringbone or something) on any other early instrument, and I've also yet to see such heavy all white binding surrounding _both_ top and back (on such a supposed early instrument). The sides decoration (the viny scrolly inlay) still looks out of place to me, and the end pins still look odd too. I have now seen many Waldzithers (at least) with a similar spikey-pointy sun-ray rosette inlay, but they could be from the 20's (sellers seem think think _all_ Waldzithers are c.1900) BTW, I stumbled upon your PDF re English Guitars in Colonial America the other day. Very interesting, nice work. I also found the recorded incidents of bass and tenor viol instructors therein illuminating. Thanks Roger To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
