Marcur: The original question was concerning the neck of the Lute and not the bowl/body. However it was not uncommon for Lutes to have been made with Ivory bowls. The interesting fact of this is that a few of the original surviving Lutes probably survived mostly because they were made of Ivory. Ivory probably did make for a decent sounding Lute, the tops were still made of Cedar or Pine.
Vance Wood. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Marcus Merrin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: "Vance Wood" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, November 07, 2003 7:17 PM Subject: Re: Purpose of veneer. > I recall seeing Anne Bolyn's lutes at Hever castle in England when the > place (Hever, not Engand) was still owned by the Astors. I seem to > recall a couple of lutes whose backs were (or seemed to me) constructed > entirely of ivory. I would imagine that this would be a highly > unsuitable material and that these were for show rather than for her > actual use, though I believe she was a player. I don't know what became > of that collection of instruments, as I don't think they were sold with > the castle. > > Marcus > > Vance Wood wrote: > > >Herbert: > > > >Ebony is very hard, beautiful and not prone to cracking, checking or > >splitting. Most Lutes are made from lighter woods such as Pine, Sycamore, > >and Aspen which are lighter woods, they are then over laid or veneered with > >fancy woods as a visual element. If the Lute's neck were made of solid > >Ebony it would be very heavy, as would any assortment of other hard woods > >such as Mahogany, Cherry, Maple and etc.. In short it is done this way > >mostly because of the weight. Then of course there are the visual aspects > >of figured hard woods such as tiger tailing, pillowing, birds eye, and curly > >figures. > > > >These elements are beautiful on an instrument but they are notoriously lousy > >as structural elements because of the erratic nature of their crazy graining > >patterns. There are also Lutes that have striped necks that match the > >pattern started by the ribs. There are Lutes that were inlayed with Ivory, > >in ornate patterns. All of these are veneered and inlayed over a lighter > >and softer core. Unless you are dealing with early Guitars most of them are > >made from solid hard wood, one of the reasons a guitar is so much heavier > >than a Lute. > > > >Vance Wood. > > > > > >----- Original Message ----- > >From: "Herbert Ward" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > >Sent: Friday, November 07, 2003 12:51 PM > >Subject: Purpose of veneer. > > > > > > > > > >>The invoice for my lute says > >> > >> "... ebony-veneered neck ..." > >> > >>The neck looks and feels good. > >> > >>But (bearing my ignorance in mind) is there other purpose to this > >>veneering? > >> > >>I know that, in construction plywood, the grain in any ply (layer) is > >>perpendicular to that in adjacent plies, for strength, and I was wondering > >>if the veneer on the neck serves a similar purpose. > >> > >> > >> > >> > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// > // Marcus Merrin PhD. > // EmptyAir Consulting > // Linux/Unix-platform database and custom server technology > // [EMAIL PROTECTED] |||||||| http://emptyair.com > // (902)225-5188 (Mobile) |||||||||| (902)455-2284 (Office) > ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// > >
