Thanks so much, Robert, my friend! I always enjoy and apprecite your insightful comments. It would, indeed, take an expert to notice the tiny flaw but such flaws are well-known to experts on old instruments as they help to authenticate the work of the master since as he aged, certain characteristic flaws cropped up in his work.
Fond regards,
Endre
relms wrote:
Endre,
I was a woodworker in a former life, and since I also owned an interest in an antiques store, I had plenty of opportunities to try my hand at repair and restoration of some fine pieces of furniture. I found that even the finest craftsmen had trouble with string inlays. Rarely do I find the intersections to be perfect, although to the untrained eye, the imperfections would generally go unnoticed. Obviously, you know intimately this wonderful instrument made by Mr. Stradivari, but I dare say that if you were to allow 100 people to look inspect it, 99 would never notice the flaw. The care with which you have set up and taken this photo highlights the imperfection almost perfectly.
