Advanced Search 
Lute (pastiche, after 17th-century Italian type)
Probably by: Leopoldo Franciolini (Italian, 1844–1920)
late 19th century
Object Place: Florence, Italy
Medium/Technique
Maple, spruce, ebony, ivory
Dimensions
Length 65.5 cm, width 29.2 cm, depth 14.4 cm (Length 25 13/16 in., width 11 1/2 in., depth 5 11/16 in.)
Credit Line
Leslie Lindsey Mason Collection
Accession Number17.1763
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsEurope, Musical Instruments
ClassificationsMusical instruments – Chordophones
DescriptionBack comprised of twenty-three ribs of maple, each separated by strips of ebony, with capping strip. Wide side pieces. Four-piece belly of irregular-grain softwood. Crude separate rose of parchment in geometrical pattern. Neck of hardwood veneered with ebony and ivory in herringbone pattern. Pegbox of ebonized wood. Tuning pegs of ebonized wood with buttons of ivory. Fingerboard of ebony inlaid with decorative oval of ivory flanked by classical figures. Nine tied-on frets of gut. Nut of ivory. Bridge (modern) of ebonized beech with cap of ivory. Fourteen strings in seven pairs. Amber-brown varnish on back.
ProvenanceFrancis W. Galpin (1858-1945), Hatfield Regis, England; 1916, sold by Francis W. Galpin to William Lindsey (1858-1922), Boston, Massachusetts; 1916, gift of William Lindsey, in memory of his daughter, Leslie Lindsey Mason, to the MFA. (Accession Date: October 5, 1916)