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"Francesca" Violin

1694
On View Gallery
Antonio Stradivari has long been thought to have been an apprentice of Nicolò Amati, but census documents do not list Stradivari as a garzone (shopboy) in the Amati household. Stradivari's early instruments do show the stylistic influence of the Amati, but as Girolamo II and Nicolò were the principal makers in Cremona during Stradivari's formative years, it would be natural for Stradivari to have been influenced by their work. Antonio Stradivari worked with two of his sons, Francesco (1671-1743) and Omobono (1679-1742), and today over 600 instruments survive from this prodigious workshop. Stradivari experimented with the shape and arching of the violin. In 1690 he devised a somewhat longer and narrower body outline that is referred to as the "long pattern." By 1700 he abandoned this pattern and reverted to the broader shape that was typical of his earlier violins.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: "Francesca" Violin
  • Maker: Antonio Stradivari (Italian, Cremona 1644–1737 Cremona)
  • Date: 1694
  • Geography: Cremona, Italy
  • Culture: Italian (Cremona)
  • Medium: Maple, spruce, ebony, mother of pearl
  • Dimensions: Height: 23 in. (58.4 cm)
    Width: 8 in. (20.3 cm)
    Depth (at lower bout): 1 3/16 in. (3 cm)

    Weight: under 40 lbs
  • Classification: Chordophone-Lute-bowed-unfretted
  • Credit Line: Bequest of Annie Bolton Matthews Bryant, 1933
  • Object Number: 34.86.2a
  • Curatorial Department: Musical Instruments

Audio

Cover Image for 9377. "Francesca" Violin

9377. "Francesca" Violin

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More Artwork

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"Antonius" Violin, Antonio Stradivari Italian, Maple, spruce, ebony, Italian (Cremona)
"Antonius" Violin
Antonio Stradivari
1711
"Gould" Violin, Antonio Stradivari Italian, Maple, spruce, ebony, Italian (Cremona)
"Gould" Violin
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The Batta-Piatigorsky Violoncello, Antonio Stradivari Italian, Spruce, maple, ebony
On loan to The Met
The Batta-Piatigorsky Violoncello
Antonio Stradivari
1714
Violin, Nicolò Amati (Cremona 1596–1684 Cremona) Italian, Spruce, maple, Italian (Cremona)
Violin
Nicolò Amati (Cremona 1596–1684 Cremona)
1669
Violin, Joachim Tielke German, Spruce, maple, German
Violin
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ca. 1685

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