English guitar
2
InstrumentEnglish guitar |
Instrument FamilyStrings |
MakerW Gibson |
Place MadeRepublic of Ireland; Europe |
Date Made1772 |
DescriptionSoundboard of spruce, joined along the centre. The rosehole is 87mm diameter. The rose features a central wreath section with instruments surrounding it. Purfling around the rosehole of five inked rings There is a single inked ring of purfling around the edge of the soundboard. The sides and back are of figured maple. There is no join at the bottom of the instrument. There is an ivory endpin, set a little towards the back, and ten turned ivory string-holding buttons. Ivory soundboard protector at the corner of the soundboard and sides at the bottom to protect the soundboard where the strings pass over. The back is bookmatched. The flame is wider on the back than on the sides. There is a single line of inked purfling around the edges on the back. The heel, neck and pegbox are made from a single piece of beech, and flow smoothly into each other. The neck has been recessed on the bass side at the back to reduce weight and make the neck width appear smaller. There are elegant brass machine heads with ivory mountings set either side of the pegbox. The buttons of the machine heads are open circles with nipples on the end. The terminal is square in section, and veneered with a tortoiseshell square inside ivory bands around the edges. The nut is ivory. The neck is 274mm long, 52mm wide at the nut and 60.5mm wide at the body join. The fingerboard is radiused and is veneered in ivory with ebony at the sides. There are 15 full width and 1 partial width frets made from flat brass. Frets 3-7 have holes through the neck for a capotasto. There is a modern green ribbon tied to the endpin and around the pegbox just behind the nut. String set up: 6 courses: (4 × 2) + (2 × 1) strings, 10 strings in total. Over size: 913mm Body length:416mm Body width, upper points: 126mm Body width, widest point: 360mm Body depth: 81.5mm (bottom) - 65mm (neck join) String length: 530mm Signature marks: The maker's signature and date "W. Gibson / 1772" is written in ink on the back next to the heel. Repair History: The original bridge, which is present, is of ebony with ivory saddle, altered by cutting down the saddle part and adding extra pieces on the feet to raise the height. The bridge currently on the instrument was made by D.P. Martin in 1999. |
NotesA. Macaulay, November 1991; D.P. Martin, 2003. |
Measurements913. |
CollectionMacaulay Collection; MIMEd |
Accession Number0309 |