Italy, c 1620
The lute was the most important instrument of art music around 1600 throughout Europe. This is a typical example.
Further details of maker: Buchenberg was German by birth and worked in Rome from c 1590 till his death in 1628.
Current ownership: Purchased in 1992 with assistance from the National Fund for Acquisitions, administered with Government funds by the National Museums of Scotland, and the National Art Collections Fund.
EUCHMI Acquisition number: (3249)
Technical description: Front of pine family with integral finely carved rose, 150mm in diameter with narrow carved band edging. The design is sixfold with flowing plant form effect. Plain tie bridge of darker wood with daisy imprint along the top and ending in an undecorated extension with an inturn at the ends; the bridge is in one piece and elegantly simple. The sound-board is edged all round with a strip of vellum (?). The sound-board runs up to a plain ebony fingerboard with edging running onto the sound-board. The peg-head is at an angle approaching 90 degrees to the fingerboard; it is of trapezial shape with ebony overlay (thick veneer) with single ivory edging lines on front, sides and back. The back is filled in with ebony and decorated with a band of six ivory lines in the centre. Pegs: slim, black with ivory balls at the top. Neck of ebony with 23 ivory lines. Back of 40 strips of striped yew. Elegantly simple end-piece also of striped yew. Small wooden eyelet at the base, with ivory dot in the centre. The sound-board is stained with finger grease along the lower side of the rose and at the upper end of the upper side of the rose, indicating the right hand playing position most often used.
Inscriptions: Handwritten on small plain label under sound-hole: "16.. / Matheus Buchenberg / Roma".
Repair history: Pegs are replacement. Rose mended. Nut is possibly a replacement. Vellum edging of sound-board probably early addition. Fingerboard is possibly a replacement.
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This page updated: 29.10.08