AS02/ 14 Circa 1920s English 4/4 violin. Instrument only. Label: ‘Job Arden 1826 -1912, Wilmslow Cheshire’. Stamp at end of fingerboard K300. Soundsample

Two-piece back of slightly irregular, wide-grained maple with narrow curl. With similar woods to ribs. Neck and Scroll of medium grain with narrow curl. Madde-red oil varnish with opaque density. Ebony fingerboard, pegs, tailpiece and chin rest.

Length of back: 36cms. String length: 33.2cms. Stop length:19.8cms.

Job Arden was relatively affluent and made instruments for the love of making and so left many unfinished as he did not need to sell them to live.  He worked on his instruments ‘year after year, in the shade of  of a giant holly-tree which stood  before his workroom window.‘ (William Henley) .

Originally, a carpenter, Job Arden(1826 to 1912) lived all his life in Wilmslow and is believed to have produced over 500 instruments in his lifetime. All his instruments which remained unsold at his death were bought by Hill and Sons. The stamp at the end of the fingerboard is typical of a Hill finished instrument.