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Scan 30
The Hawley Collection of violins, 1904
21 lines. Read by computer on 28 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1THE HAWLEY COLLECTION OF VIOLINS
3he by no means used it to the exclusion of quarter-cut maple. The pine of the bellies is usually of very straight grain and of the choicest quality. His varnish during his early period, as stated before, was practically identical with that of Nicola Amati. But in the latter part of the decade 1680 to 1690, it gradually assumed more color, later taking on a beautiful deep shade of orange. By 1690, he had arrived at the point where he began to break away entirely from the Amati tradition in every form. Henceforth, his model was to be original. His sound holes in the upper and lower angles and in the wings took on the characteristic style which, with very slight local changes, was ever afterwards to be employed by him. His scroll, 1690 to 1700, is beyond description in the elegance of style and the strength and sharpness of the carving of the volute, especially at the point of contact with the center; perhaps a shade less massive in appearance than that of the preceding epoch, it makes the senses fairly "ache with satisfaction." The best existing specimen of this period is the example known as the Tuscan, one of the quartet ordered by Marquis Ariberti in 1686, and finished by Stradivari in 1690.* It was in 1691 or 1692 that he originated what is known as the "long Strad" model. These instruments are distinguished from his other violins by their elongated appearance, which is occasioned by an increased length equal to about 1-8 of an inch, which is compensated for by the decreased breadth of the lower bout to the same extent, and most noticeably the upper bout, so that the cubic measurement of the body remains practically the same. The waist or middle bout is long and slender especially in the upper part; the corners have a droop and length which distinguish them from his work at any other period, and which cannot, in the opinion of the writer, be regarded as an improvement in style. The edges have a slightly heavier appearance than those of the preceding epoch. The sound hole is very symmetrical and compact, slightly broader at the middle, and of the regulation length. The technical perfection of the work of this period will always serve to arouse the ardent admiration of the connoisseur. Stradivari was unrivaled in the use of tools, the result in part of dexterity and in part of extraordinary nerve force, which gave him a hand of unerring steadiness. The manner in which he purfled his instruments at this time, especially the method of forming the miter-joint and extending the point to the farthest recess, in the most faultless manner, shows him to have been one of the most adept workmen that ever lived. The color of his varnish, which up to this time had been of a lightish shade, varying from a rather pale yellow to light orange red, now assumed a deeper tone, and hereafter it is found in shades ranging from a medium orange to a dark chocolate shade of red. The broadish figure of his backs of the former epoch gives way to a small narrow curl. Specimens are found mostly in one-piece backs. Their size, as will be seen by the accompanying figures, is the largest ever made by Stradivari, 14 5-16 inches in length by 8 to 8 1-16 inches breadth of lower bout. But so evenly is this increase in length distributed that the
5* Another known as the Nelson is in the possession of Mr. D. J. Partello, the measurements of which are:
7<table>
8 <tr>
9 <th>Length</th>
10 <th>Width of lower bouts</th>
11 <th>Width of upper bouts</th>
12 <th>Width of sides at top</th>
13 <th>Width of sides at bottom</th>
14 <th>14 inches.</th>
15 <th>8 1/16 inches.</th>
16 <th>6 3/8 inches.</th>
17 <th>1 3/10 inches.</th>
18 <th>1 1/4 inches.</th>
19 </tr>
20</table>
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