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Signature: "ARNOLD - DOLMETSCH - LONDINI - FECIT - M-DCCC-XC-VII - No 6" written in gold letters on the nameboard. "Arnold Dolmetsch / London 1896. No 6" is written in ink on the soundboard.
Rose: There is no rose.
Scantlings:
| Element | Length | Height | Thickness | Wood |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Back/Front: | 1732 | 165 | 15.3 | pine |
| End: | 532 | 166 | 15.9 | pine |
| Keywell: | 843 | 47.9 | 15.5 | pine |
| Sndbd front: | 771 | 169 | 15.3 | pine |
| Lid: | 1751 | 547 | 14.5 | pine |
| Baseboard: | Flemish style | 25 | pine |
Inside case dimensions - Length: 1700. Width: 503
Soundboard to the top of the case: 37.0. 4' Wrestplank/8' hitchpin rail to the top of the case: 30½
The pine sides of the case are dovetailed together and sit on and are doweled to the baseboard. Unlike Hass the baseboard moulding is applied to the edges of the baseboard rather than being cut into it, and the keywell braces appear to be mitred to the front of the case rather than mortised and tenoned and dovetailed to it; the treble keywell brace is tenoned into the spine.
Keyboard:
Compass: F1 to f³, 61 notes. 3-octave span: 492½
Total width of keyboard at the natural fronts: 840
Sharp length: 87 Naturals head length: 42
Length of keylevers: Bass: 430 Treble: 487
Balance point to front of natural: Bass: 153 Treble: 163
Scalings:
| 8' String Length | 4' String Length | |
|---|---|---|
| f³ | 100 | |
| c³ | 133½ | |
| f² | 208 | |
| c² | 282½ | |
| f¹ | 423½ | |
| c¹ | 568 | |
| f | 826 | |
| c | 1011½ | 602 |
| F | 1208½ | 782½ |
| C | 1321 | 914½ |
| F1 | 1462 | 1106½ |
The instrument is double-strung throughout except for the additional 4' strings in the bass from F1 to c.
Soundboard gauge markings:
There are no indications of gauge numbers on either the keys
or the soundboard near the tuning pins for either the 4' or the 8' strings.
The note names are written near the tuning pins in ink using lower case
lettering throughout the whole of the compass.
Pin dimensions:
| Element | Bridge Pins | Hitch Pins | Tuning Pins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 8': | |||
| Diameter: | 1.0-1.3 | 1.6-1.8 | 3.4-4.1 |
| Height | 2.0 | 4.3 | 29 |
| Material | brass | brass | iron |
| Element | Bridge Pins | Hitch Pins | Tuning Pins |
|---|---|---|---|
| 4': | |||
| Diameter: | 1.2 | 1.8 | 4.0 |
| Height | 2.3 | 3.6 | 21 |
| Material | brass | brass | iron |
Total length of the tuning pins: 8': ?; 4': ?
Neither the 8' bridge nor the 4' bridge is back-pinned.
Keyboard pin dimensions:
| Element | Balance Pins | Front guide Pins |
|---|---|---|
| Diameter: | 3.3 | 3.2 |
| Height: | 17.7 | 25.5 |
| Material: | iron | iron |
Bridge dimensions:
| Bridge 8' | F1 | C | c | c¹ | c² | c³ | f³ | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | 14.2 | 14.0 | 14.7 | 15.1 | 14.5 | 14.0 | 14.2 | = height | |
| b | 14.9 | 14.2 | 14.3 | 11.7 | 11.6 | 11.3 | 11.5 | = width at base | |
| c | 4.6 | 3.3 | 3.2 | 4.0 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.5 | = top slope |
| Bridge 4' | F1 | C | c | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | 7.6 | 8.1 | 7.3 | = height | |
| b | 8.4 | 8.0 | 7.9 | = width at base | |
| c | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.7 | = top slope |
Soundboard wood quality:
Maximum number of 32 rings per 2.5 cms near the 8' e² pin.
Minimum number of 12 rings per 2.5 cms near the bass end of the 4' bridge.
Materials:
| Section | Material |
|---|---|
| 4' wrestplank / 8' hitchpin rail: | thick veneer of rosewood on walnut |
| 8' Wrestplank: | ? |
| Nameboard: | pine |
| Internal framing: | ? |
| Liners: | pine |
| Lid: | pine |
| 4' h.p.r.: | ?pinet |
| 8' Bridge: | sycamore |
| 4 Bridge: | sycamore |
| Naturals: | ebony |
| Sharps: | solid boxwood |
| Key arcades: | ebony |
| Keylevers: | lime |
| Balance rail: | oak |
| Key guide system: | front guides piano style |
| Soundboard: | spruce |
| Soundboard moulding: | ?pine gilded over |
| Soundbars: | ?spruce |
| Cutoff bar: | ?pine |
| Stand: | trestle stand of pine with moulded edges |
Decoration:
The decoration of the instrument is very plain.
The outside of the case is varnished over the natural
wood, with gilded mouldings on the case top and on the
soundboard moulding around three edges of soundboard.
The central raised panel of the toolbox lid is veneered
in ebony with ?boxwood stringing. The only other
decoration features are the elaborate strap hinges, the
simple key arcades and the usual ridge carving on the keys.
Biography of Arnold Dolmetsch:
Arnold Dolmetsch was born in Le Mans, France on 24 February,
1858 and he died in Haslemere, Surrey on 28 February 1940, aged 82.
He was married three times, his third wife being Mabel a player of the
viola da gamba, who survived until after his death. Dolmetsch made his
first clavichord in 1894, only two years before this instrument, and his
first harpsichord in 1895. The 1894-6 clavichords belong to a series of
six almost identical instruments of which the Russell Collection clavichord
is the last. All of these were based on the clavichords of Hass, possibly
on one dated 1763 the restoration of which was completed by Dolmetsch in 1895.
From 1905 to 1909 Dolmetsch worked for the firm of Chickering in Boston, U.S.A.;
and from 1911 to 1914 for the firm of Gaveau in Paris. Besides making instruments
Dolmetsch was an enterprising performer of early music, and was one of the first
and most important musicians involved in the early music revival at the
beginning of the twentieth century.
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