A Fine Sterling Silver Pernambuco German Bow Willy Roth circa 1940-1950’s

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Branded:

We have a beautiful Willy Roth violin bow made in Germany. Ernst Heinrich Roth (1877-1948) was a prominent figure in violin making the last half of the 19th century and the first half of the 20th century. Willy Roth, the bow maker – same family line, different workshop. This is a fine bow in sterling silver mounts. I meticulously went over the bow and added a new silver winding and leather thumb and lapping to bring the bow weight up. Previously with the winding that was on the bow, plastic with a leather thumb, the bow only weighed 55.6 grams. Completed the bow is 60.0 grams, feels fantastic, and plays well. The stick and frog are in excellent condition and the stick cleaned up very well. The color in the wood, a golden orange/brown on top of a golden yellow ground is gorgeous. The Willy Roth bow is legit and in excellent condition. The maker was well trained, and the fittings mate to the stick seamlessly. From the 1930’s branded E.R. Roth bows were supplied to the firm by different makers: Adolf Schuster and Otto Paulus. These makers supplied unstamped bows to the Ernst Heinrich Roth workshop and the Roth firm graded and stamped them according to their own system. Willy Roth bows were made in the same area, Markneukirchen, this one being made in the late 40’s or early 1950’s. The bow is made of Pernambuco wood, octagonal in section and has a blind eye ebony frog mounted in sterling silver. The head of the bow is very masculine with strong lines while the camber begins immediately after the head. There is no origin stamp on the butt of the bow; many Willy Roth bows were made for export to the West and usually were sold with a violin outfit. The silver endscrew is of three pieces and the lining and heel of the bow have silver pin work holding everything in place. This is a well-made bow and a fantastic playing stick ready for generations of playing.

Weight fully haired 60.0 grams