Books › The Violin: A concise exposition of the general principles of construction.., 1871 › scan 25
Scan 25
The Violin: A concise exposition of the general principles of construction.., 1871
4 lines. Read by computer on 28 September 2026. No printed page number was found. See the scan on archive.org.
1human voice than any other. This excellency in the violin arises chiefly from its power, quality, and flexibility, due chiefly to its outline, material, and proportions, greater thickness, with smaller number and increased tension of the strings, as well as to the improved form and greater strength of the bow used with the instrument. Rude approximations to the violin are to be found decorating monumental tablets and illuminated manuscripts throughout Britain and the Continent at an early date, but those illustrations chiefly represent the rebec with one, two, and three strings, although some representations certainly possess a close analogy of parts, as incurvatures of sides, bridge, tail-piece, finger-board, and extended hand. The earliest representation known of any instrument truly approximating to the fiddle or violin, is contained in the "De Cantu et Musica Sacra" of the Abbot Gerbert, and is assigned to the eighth century. In this figure the instrument has but one string, but possesses a bridge and tail-piece, two sound-holes, and something like a finger-board, whilst a bow rests on the string, and the portion of the right hand shows that it was held as the violin.
3A somewhat similar instrument, having four strings, with two circular sounding holes near the top, illustrates an ancient illuminated manuscript—"Liber Psalmorum"—assigned to the Anglo Saxons of the tenth century. This illustration represents David with a harp upon his knee, a dove descending, whilst upon each side is a figure; one an ancient juggler performing a favourite feat of tossing up knives, whilst
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