I'm going to quote Lundberg to illustrate a point, but it could be anybody... visit any webpage, read any modern book, and the same sort of language is there: "We know the width of the neck at the nut and body... because these are standard measures of the period." We do? They are? This information is where, exactly? I know in Lundberg's case it was in a black notebook that I wish someone would just publish... no cleanup, no editing, no promises, none of that is required, just the record itself. Microfiche the damn thing. If you build it, they will come.
I've seen some offerings from museum collections. CIMCIM has a list of 44 lutes they have tech drawings of. In their (somewhat dated) price list they offer a collection of 39 drawings, and a later update adds a group of 14 "Lutes, Guitars and Cithers". The dates of these drawings (mostly from the 70s) makes me wonder: was the data interpreted in the fashion of the times (i.e. with reference to a more Hauser-like building) or is the data merely collected, with interpretation up to the observer? I haven't read this list consistently over the years, but the times I have been paying attention I've never heard anyone say they'd bought drawings from a collection like this; I have, however, heard people recommend that others do so. So I'm really wondering: does anyone on the list KNOW the value, to a modern maker of historically-accurate instruments, of the drawings such as those in this collection? Are there any other collections people could recommend from empirical knowledge? As far as books go, my collection is nigh on complete. Plans, a few. I haven't ventured into the realm of museum drawings, largely because of the price, but I find myself at a point where I desire more knowledge but don't know exactly how to get it. - Ben To get on or off this list see list information at http://www.cs.dartmouth.edu/~wbc/lute-admin/index.html
