Fiddle

Dateca. 1845

Artist/Maker Micah Howe (1790-1853)

MediumThe neck and body are maple; the tailpiece and tuning pegs are ebony; the fingerboard is rosewood; the strings are cat gut; and the chin rest is a man-made, plastic-like material and chrome-plated steel. The hair on the carved human head is either a thick paint layer, or pigmented sawdust. The figure's eyes are painted.

Dimensions23 3/4" x 8 1/8" x 1 1/4" (60.3 cm. x 20.6 cm. x 3.1 cm.)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1992.708.1, A

DescriptionStandard violin form with a carved and painted head of a bearded man located at the top of the head of the instrument.
MarkingsCarved into the top of the back of the body below the neck is "M. Howe". Printed and written in ink on a paper label glued inside the body is "M Howe/Manufacturer/Henniker, N.H."
ProvenanceOwnership prior to source unknown.