William Henry Dow was born in Scotland in 1834 and moved to Australia in 1855 to work as a pattern maker at Langlands Port Phillip Foundry in Melbourne. Initially a hobby, he began making violins in his workshop in South Melbourne and received medals for his work at national exhibitions. After retiring from patternmaking, he devoted himself to creating instruments and made over 200 violins by his death in 1928. It is still being determined how many instruments Dow made, as he only started numbering them when he was satisfied with their quality. One of his violins is on display at the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney.
Please get in touch with Animato Strings on 07 3876 3877 if you want this violin.
William Henry Dow was one of Australia’s greatest violin makers. He lived from 1834 to 1928. One of his violins is displayed in the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney.
William Henry Dow was born in Scotland in 1836 and immigrated to Australia 19 years later. He worked with wood throughout his life, first as a joiner in Scotland. When he arrived in Melbourne in 1855, he was reunited with other members of his family who had made the journey from Scotland to Australia a few years earlier. By the time of William’s arrival, his uncle James was the manager of Langlands Port Phillip Foundry, and there William had a job waiting for him as a pattern maker – someone who made wooden patterns for sand casting iron and other metals.
The story goes that William created his first violin at the age of 15. He continued making violins as a hobby from his workshop in South Melbourne, still standing today. William entered his instruments in national exhibitions, starting with the 1875 Intercolonial Exhibition, and received medals for his work, which judges described as “exceedingly creditable.” Despite being entirely self-taught, he was successful. William once said, “I never could get the instruction I wanted from books, and I had to work at night, as I was employed all day at my engineering work.” Eventually, he retired from patternmaking to focus solely on making instruments. By his death in 1928, he had created more than 200 instruments. The exact number of Dow instruments is still being determined, as he began numbering them when he was satisfied that they met his high standards.
Please get in touch with Animato Strings on 07 3876 3877 if you want this violin.
This is a Charles Gaillard 1867 Violin. Charles Gaillard was an apprentice of the prominent French violinmaker and restorer, Charles Adolphe Gand.
Ref. F007
This French violin was made in 1922 by Amédée Dominique Dieudonné, who specialized in copying Cremona Masters and achieved a superior varnishing technique. He started his own workshop in Mirecourt after the First World War in the 1920s.
This is the Paul Kaul violin made in France dated 1918. Paul Kaul is a French violin maker who joined several workshops such as Thibouville Lamy, Silvestre and Maucotel, Vuillemin-Didion. He started several workshops on rue Racine, Nantes in 1907, rue du Pont Communeau in 1908, and at 130 Boulevard Brune in 1926.
This is an Old German Violin made probably in Germany in the mid 19th century. Repaired professionally by Animato Strings and is now in very good playing condition.
A violin made and labelled in 1917 by Leandro Bisiach (1864 – 1945) of Milan, an Italian violin maker born in Casale Monferratos, known as the father of violin makers in the Bisiach family.
We have here a Collin - Mezin Violin made in Paris in 1911. Charles Jean Baptiste Collin-Mezin is a French violin maker who started at a young age under the tutelage of his father, Claud-Nicolas Collin. His own workshop started in 1867 at the 14 and 18 rue du Faubourg Poissonnièr in France.
This violin is labelled "Antonius Vinaccia, Napoli in Via Constantinii, a. 1792" and shows evidence of being repaired in 1902. Antonio Vinaccia was a renowned instrument maker in Naples during the mid-18th to late 19th centuries. He was known for making violins in the style of Gagliano and exceptional mandolins. His craftsmanship is preserved in Naples's Museo Spagnuolo (Palazzo degli Studi). Antonio's sons, Gennaro and Gaetano, also became instrument makers.
Check out the Italian Copy of Geovanni Schwarz violin made about 1920. Geovanni Schwarz was born in 1865 in Padua, Italy who by the influence and tutelage of his uncle Eugenio Degani honed his skills, established his own workshop, and won a gold medal in 1916 in Rome Italy.
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