Violin
1835-1840 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Thomas Howell made violins, 'cellos, double basses and guitars in Bristol during the 1830s and 1840s. In December 1835, he took out a patent for 'improved' stringed instruments, so as to give them a better tone and appearance than the traditional version. Distinctive though they look, with their simplified curves, Howell's instruments never achieved any lasting popularity and failed to replace the tried and tested form of violins and 'cellos which musicians prefer.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | Planed pine, sycamore and ebony |
| Brief description | English, pear-shaped with arrow-motif inlaid on the tail. Howell's patent, 1835-40 |
| Physical description | 'Model without corners and with two-lobed bottom. Back of one piece of sycamore. Pine belly with C holes back to back. A flat tailpiece of ebony inlaid with an arrow pattern, and a nearly flat, plain ebony fingerboard' (Anthony Baines: Catalogue of Musical Instruments in the Victoria and Albert Museum - Part II: Non-keyboard instruments. (London, 1998), pp. 17 - 18). |
| Dimensions |
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| Marks and inscriptions | Gasparo da Salo (Printed label (no date) on inside of instrument.) |
| Object history | This instrument formed part of the collections of Carl Engel (1817 - 1882), which were purchased by the South Kensington Museum in 1882, and was valued at £2. |
| Summary | Thomas Howell made violins, 'cellos, double basses and guitars in Bristol during the 1830s and 1840s. In December 1835, he took out a patent for 'improved' stringed instruments, so as to give them a better tone and appearance than the traditional version. Distinctive though they look, with their simplified curves, Howell's instruments never achieved any lasting popularity and failed to replace the tried and tested form of violins and 'cellos which musicians prefer. |
| Bibliographic reference | Anthony Baines: Catalogue of Musical Instruments in the Victoria and Albert Museum - Part II: Non-keyboard instruments. (London, 1998), pp. 17 - 18. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 160-1882 |
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| Record created | January 9, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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