Violin By Richard Duke London C.1765.

Richard Duke worked in London between 1750 and 1780 and is generally regarded as one of the finest English makers. His work was later much imitated and many copies of his work were made after his demise. Duke generally made violins according to the Stainer pattern around 1752, later moving on to utilise the Amati pattern and made only a few examples using the long stradivarius model which are now very scarce - one example of which has been detailed in The Strad.

Distinguishable by the high standard of workmanship and choice of near acoustically perfect tonewoods, genuine Dukes are highly regarded and sought after.

The violin offered here is the Amati Model and comes with a letter confirming authenticity from J & A Beare.

The instrument has a two piece back of maple with a strong medium-fine curl running horizontally across the back from the joint. The ribs are of a somewhat less pronounced curl and the pegbox and scroll of almost plain wood.

The violin has a two piece pine front of medium grain.

The varnish is a warm amber-orange colour on a yellow ground.