~1875 Brazilian Rosewood Parlor Project Brazilian Rosewood
I don’t know what this guitar is, who made it, or when it was made, but I’m sure that it dates from before WW II, and my guess is the mid to late 1800’s. I was sold this guitar as an 1800s Martin 0-16, and the 13 1/4" lower bout, the pyramid ebony bridge, and the beautiful wood seem to confirm that. However, I see no logos, serial numbers, or marks still visible anywhere, inside or out. While the family selling it said "Granddad only played Martin guitars", given there's no embossed Martin logo, I certainly can't sell it as a Martin. Obviously in its current condition, it is an ambitious project for anybody; however, even as is, the vintage tuners and the wood alone are worth a good bit. At the same time, it has the potential to be a really beautiful finished guitar if repaired by a talented luthier.
While I am certainly no expert, I would date it at the 3rd quarter of the 19th century as the kurfling inside the guitar holding the top to the sides appears to be joined and not single pieces as I believe was the common way to do it earlier. It certainly has been made of beautiful wood, apparently red spruce tone wood and Brazilian Rosewood back and sides. When I look at the details of the headstock and neck I do not think that it was made by Martin, which was very careful in finishing the wood to be smooth and have slightly rounded edges, not abrupt ones like on this guitar.
This guitar’s colorful inlaid rosette and the multi-layered wood and ivory purfling and binding is very intricate. The ebony pyramid bridge looks original, and the tuners are apparently the original vintage tuners. The guitar’s total length is about 37 ¼”, with a body length of 18 ½”, a lower bout of 13 ¼”, a 12/17-fret scale length of about 24 3/8”, and a depth at the lower bout of 3 7/8”. The ebony nut is 1 ¾”, the upper bout is 9 5/8”, and the waist is 7 7/8.”
Obviously, this instrument has suffered a traumatic event in the last 150-odd years, made worse perhaps by the guitar not being strong enough for the string tension at the time, since the ancient strings I removed from it were all steel. Most 19th-century guitars were made for gut strings and rather lightly braced. The light wear on the apparently original very thin frets and little visible wear on the fingerboard suggest that it has hardly been played for much of its recent career, so the damage probably dates from decades ago. The original bridge pins, end insert, and pin are missing.
It looks like it was dropped hard on its end pin, destroying the end insert and part of the elaborate top binding, knocking out the end block (included), cracking the back in 3 places and the treble side in 1 place, loosening several braces, and loosening the top and back from the sides. There are also two small cracks above the bridge, and the top center seam is slightly opened. There is no missing wood in these cracks, and they fit back together nicely. I also note that the fret board is dry, shrunken, and cracked, as is the ebony pyramid bridge, which will need to be glued and re-set. The good news is that all of these repairs except the binding are standard by themselves, and my luthier just told me that he can fix everything wrong with it--but not for at least 6 months.
Unfortunately, I can’t invest six months and several hundred dollars in repairs. All in all, this is a wonderful period piece, and restored it is sure to appreciate as a part of a serious stringed instrument collection. I suspect it will be tremendous fun to play, of course, as well. I trust it will find a home with a real guitar person who can treat it with the respect it deserves.
Buyer pays a flat rate of $55 for insurance and shipping to the lower forty-eight states; shipping costs elsewhere will be negotiated as necessary. Payment by Paypal is preferred; cashier’s checks are acceptable, but checks must clear before the guitar will be shipped.
I have tried to be perfectly clear and accurate in describing this vintage instrument, but obviously it is being offered as a major PROJECT, so its return will not be accepted unless it can be shown that it was egregiously misrepresented in this listing. I am neither an expert in 19th-century guitars nor a luthier, so I may have missed something. Please check out the pictures and ask any questions you might have before offering to buy it.
Thank you for your interest in this cool old guitar.
ALUMPSTER'S GUITARS
Payments by Paypal, cashier’s checks, money orders, or personal checks are acceptable, but all payments must clear my bank before the guitar will be shipped. I will CONSIDER reasonable offers, even including installment payments and trade-ins, but generally since I already attempt to price my guitars very competitively, unusual deals must be unusually sweet.
From henceforth [that's how retired English teachers talk], insurance and shipping to the lower 48 states is $55 due to constantly rising shipping costs unless a specific listing says otherwise; shipping costs elsewhere will be negotiated as necessary. I have sold guitars to Russia, Japan, Australia, and over 50 other countries, as well as almost every state in the USA. Since some of my guitars travel thousands of miles, I take care to use lots of packing materials, protect the neck inside the case, and of course de-tune the strings.
I make every effort to describe and illustrate each guitar and case with scrupulous accuracy. However, many of my instruments are well-played vintage items which are many years old, and I am not a luthier. One should assume that any guitar will require some set-up to satisfy your personal requirements, and that not every flaw or ding will be seen/recognized/described in the listing. Thus the return of an instrument will not be accepted unless it can be shown that it was egregiously misrepresented in this listing. Please read the listing carefully, check out the pictures, and ask any questions you might have before offering to buy.