Antonio Stradivari, Cremona, 1736, the 'Muntz'
Violin: 40062
Labeled, ". . . D'Anni 92."
Back: Two-piece
Length of back: 35.6 cm
Upper bouts: 16.2 cm
Lower bouts: 20.3 cm
There are 9 additional images in the archive which are not available publicly. Please contact us for more information.
Notes:
The label in this instrument bears an inscription, " 92 years old " , handwritten by Stradivari himself. It is one of the last few works of masterpiece ever produced. The condition of this violin is exceptional and its tonal quality has a first class reputation. This instrument takes its name from the ownership by a famous collector, H.M.Muntz of Birmingham in the late 1800s.Nippon Music Foundation: Muntz Stradivari
The Hills describe this instrument as pathetically showing the master's failing craftsmanship due to his advanced age.
Antonio Stradivarius: His Life & Work, W. Henry, Arthur F. & Alfred E. Hill, W. Henry, Arthur F. & Alfred E. Hill, Antonio Stradivari: His Life & Work (1644-1737), London
Count Cozio's notes: "Violin made by Antonio Stradivari in 1736 "92 years old" has been added by the maker. The back is slightly [larger] than a short medium model. Fine work, but not perfect especially in the purfling. Two-piece back, average grain. The two pins [...] bottom side [...] grain [...] foreign [wood] and slightly thicker than other larger violins. The top is intact, with wide even grain. Its voice is quite strong and good. Light yellow-reddish varnish. [It is worth] at least 60 luigi." (p. 228)
Memoirs of a Violin Collector: Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue, Memoirs of a Violin Collector: Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue, Baltimore
Count cozio's Notes, June 1, 1816: "Measurements of my violin made by Antonio Stradivari. Not too large a model. Yellowish varnish. Two-piece back, beautiful grain. Intact, with label [written] in 1736; there is the reference to 92 years (see folio 19). This is the strongest among ten other [violins] made by this maker taken in Cremona from Antonio's grandson in 1775. [Measurements] taken by the compass including the outline. . . ." (p. 242)
Memoirs of a Violin Collector: Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue, Memoirs of a Violin Collector: Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue, Baltimore
Provenance
| 1737-1743 | Francesco Stradivari |
| 1743-1775 | Paolo Stradivari |
| ... | ... |
| from 1775 and in 1816 | Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue |
| until 1831 | Luigi Tarisio |
| 1831-1832 | Charles François Gand |
| 1832-1862 | Count d'Amiens |
| 1862-1867 | Charles Willemotte |
| from 1867 | Minard de Marsinielliers |
| 1874-1886 | George Henri Marc Muntz |
| 1886-1888 | W. E. Hill & Sons |
| 1888-1889 | Lord Wilton |
| 1889-1892 | W. E. Hill & Sons |
| from 1892 | Alfred Sassoon |
| in 1902 | Higgins |
| ... | ... |
| 1912-1913 | Robert Augustus Bower |
| 1913-1949 | Dr. Georg Talbot |
| 1949-1957 | Martin Katahn |
| 1957-1968 | Dr. Ephraim P. Engleman |
| in 1968 | Sold by Rembert Wurlitzer Inc. |
| from 1968 | Steven Staryk |
| from 1972 and in 1987 | Howard Gottlieb |
| ... | ... |
| from 1997 and in 2003 | Nippon Music Foundation |
Known players
Anne Akiko Meyers, Judith Ingolffsson
Certificates & Documents
Certificate: Jacques Français, New York, NY (1972) #937.- Certificate: Hamma & Co., Stuttgart
- Certificate: W. E. Hill & Sons, London
- Certificate: Rembert Wurlitzer Inc., New York, NY
Certificate: Jacques Français, New York, NY (1972) #937.Cozio holds copies of many certificates and other documents, some of which are available to view on request. Please contact us if you wish to view a particular document. (Note that we do not always have permission to share documents.)
References
- Antonio Stradivari and His Instruments, William Henley, Amati Publishing, Ltd., Sussex, 1961 (illustrated)
- Antonio Stradivari: His Life & Work (1644-1737), W. Henry, Arthur F. & Alfred E. Hill, William E. Hill & Sons, London, 1902
- Capolavori di Antonio Stradivari, Charles Beare, Arnoldo Mondadori S.p.A., Milan (illustrated)
- Cremona 1730-1750: the Olympus of Violin Making, Christopher Reuning, editor, Consorzio Liutai Antonio Stradivari, Cremona (illustrated)
- How Many Strads? (1999 edition), Doring, Bein & Fushi, Bein & Fushi, Chicago, 1999 (illustrated)
- Violins & Violinists, February, 1943, Ernest N. Doring, William Lewis & Son, Chicago (illustrated)
- Italian Violin Makers (1964), Karel Jalovec, Paul Hamlyn, London, 1964 (illustrated)
- L'Esposizione di Liuteria Antica a Cremona nel 1937, Comitato Stradivariano, Cremona (illustrated)
- Meisterwerke Italienischer Geigenbaukunst, Fridolin Hamma, Hamma & Co., Stuttgart (illustrated)
- Memoirs of a Violin Collector: Count Ignazio Alessandro Cozio di Salabue, Brandon Frazier, Baltimore
- Nippon Music Foundation: Muntz Stradivari
- Private Archives - 10842
- The Jacques Français Rare Violins, Inc. Photographic Archive and Business Records, 1844-1998, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC, Box 43 (illustrated)
- The Miracle Makers, Bein & Fushi, Chicago (illustrated)
- Violin Iconography of Antonio Stradivari 1644-1737, Herbert K. Goodkind, Larchmont, NY (illustrated)
Antonio Stradivari and His Instruments, William Henley, Amati Publishing, Ltd., Sussex, 1961 (illustrated)
