Interesting Italian swell back double bass body by Joseph (G...

Hammer

£4,200

Interesting Italian swell back double bass body by Joseph (Giuseppe) Marconcini, Ferrara, 1805, with steep sloping shoulders, violin corners, the back and sides of poplar and the table of spruce, length of back 42 7/8", stop length 22 1/4", ribs 7 1/4", upper bouts 18", waist 14 1/8", lower bouts 25 1/2"

*This double bass has an interesting history, having previously belonged to Zdzislav Faczysnski, who was a regular double bass player in two bands on Cunard's RMS Franconia in 1965. In 1968, the owner had the bass stolen from his cabin by a dock worker and it was later recovered in a junk shop, having had the varnish stripped with the label, neck and scroll gone missing. A full account of this story can be viewed, along with images of the instrument in the online catalogue images

The instrument, which was purchased later by Hamilton Caswell, is also sold with a carefully chosen plain maple block for making a new neck scroll in keeping with the flame-free Italian poplar of the back and ribs

Also accompanying this lot is a letter from Faczynski to Caswell dated 1967 recording the wording of the Marconcini label and an article written by Sergio Scaramelli with excellent photographs of another Giuseppe Marconcini double bass, which clearly provides a reference of the maker's characteristics