Dendrochronology

Now the range of means available for appraising instruments is even more than vast than in the past, and for the past twenty years we have been able to benefit from a precious tool – dendrochronology. This tool allows us to date the rings in the front of the violin and to thus date the wood of the belly. It also allows us to group certain instruments together and also to determine the origins of the wood used. In addition, it can also be used to determine whether certain elements are original or if these have been restored.

Comparison performed between the dates written on the labels of 13 Italian violins from the 17^th and 18^th centuries and their respective dendrochronological dates:

Laboratory numbers	Original violin maker	Label date	Measured date	Missing rings	Type of assembly
NECH-016	Gofredus Cappa	1688	1637	51 ans	P
NECH-028	Giovanni-Baptista Guadagnini	1751	1741	10 ans	CC-C
NECH-029	Joseph Guarnerius	1741	1736	5 ans	CC-C
NECH-030	Antonio Stradivari	1727	1719	8 ans	CC-A
NECH-039	Antonio Stradivari	1688	1671	17 ans	P
NECH-045	Giovanni-Baptista Guadagnini	1760	1754	6 ans	CC-C
NECH-056	(Lorenzo) Gio-Baptista Guadagnini	1745	1735	10 ans	CC-C
NECH-066	Antonio D’Ambrosio	1798	1776	22 ans	P
NECH-070	Joseph Guarneri fil. Andreae	1711	1707	4 ans	CC-A
NECH-074	Francesco Zani	1761	1736	25 ans	CC-B
NECH-084	Giovanni-Baptista Guadagnini	1774	1765	9 ans	CC-B
NECH-094	Thomas Balestrieri	1768	1751	17 ans	CC-A
NECH-292	Dominicus Montagnana	1729	1723	6 ans	CC-C

 

Series of rings (binocular):