Joseph & George Panormo Instruments – Commentary

Joseph Panormo Violin, London

15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin

The signature ‘J. Panormo’ found inside the back of this violin matches that found on Joseph’s marriage licence. He is reputed to have never used a label but frequently signed his name where the label would normally be placed. This violin is believed to have been bought by the present owner’s great grandfather, William Henry Kearns, directly from the maker after his arrival in London from Dublin in 1817. It is a typical Stradivari model for Joseph but he is also known to have made violins in the style of Guarneri ‘del Gesù’. The blocks and linings are of spruce, with the C-bout linings possibly let into the corner blocks. There were no conclusive results from the dendrochronology examination.

15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London
15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin, London

16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello

London • Tarisio ID 64921

The Amati influence was still proving popular, as can be seen in the viola made by George in 1812 (no. 17) and instruments sold by A. and J. Betts into the 1850s. This Amatise cello has the same body length and similar proportions to the two earlier cellos made by Vincenzo. The scroll has the extra turn into the eye not seen on the Stradivari-pattern instruments made by the family and the back of the pegbox retains the detailing and rounded corners often seen on English cellos during the first quarter of the 19th century. It proved impossible to obtain a clear dendrochronological result.

16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London
16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello, London

17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola

London • Tarisio ID 73266

George must have made this viola, dated 1812, just before Vincenzo died and it is perhaps one of the earliest instruments to bear his label. The viola, which has a body length of 387 mm, is once again influenced by the Amatis and has typical light fluting through the sound-hole wings while retaining the slight extra turn into the eye of the scroll. The printed label is the same as one found in an early guitar made by Louis but has a handwritten letter ‘G’ added before the printed ‘Panormo’. The blocks are of spruce and the linings of willow, while the original top block has a single screw to x the neck, which is 145 mm long. There is no relationship between the two halves of the front and only a tenuous date of around 1780 given for the bass side.

17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London
17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola, London

18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin

London • Tarisio ID 73268

This Stradivari model violin by George bears a different printed label from the previous violin and is dated 1830. His hand is quite distinct from that of Joseph and can perhaps be detected in some of Vincenzo’s later instruments. George is believed to have been making guitars for his younger brother Louis by the time this violin was made and it may well have been sold through Louis’s shop on the High Street, St Giles. The blocks and linings are made from spruce with the C-bout linings probably either butted up to the corner blocks or morticed in very slightly. According to the dendrochronological examination, the bass side of the front dates from 1720 and the treble from 1722, and the wood shows an affinity with spruce used in England during the early 1700s, particularly by Daniel Parker.

18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London

19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin

London • Tarisio ID 76642

Bearing a slightly different printed label, dated 1833, from the previous instrument no. 18, this is another Stradivari model violin made by George before he left for a brief period to work in Liverpool. There are several hasty scraper marks visible on the surface of the front, which is once again typical of wood used in mid-19th-century Paris and similar to that used by Lupot. Although the neatly cut sound-holes are reminiscent of those seen on the later violins of Vincenzo, the edges of the wings are often flatter on instruments by George. The blocks and linings are willow with the C-bout linings appearing to be slightly morticed into the corner blocks.

– Andrew Fairfax

19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London
19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin, London

15. JOSEPH PANORMO Violin

16. JOSEPH PANORMO Cello

17. GEORGE PANORMO Viola

18. GEORGE PANORMO Violin

19. GEORGE PANORMO Violin

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