1840 Schatz Parlor Fair, Soft

Henry Schatz was an early partner of CF Martin in New York in the 1830s, and later set out on his own, eventually moving to Boston in the 1840s. This example is equal to a size-2 Martin, extremely popular as a parlor guitar in the 19th-century. It has H.A SCHATZ BOSTON impressed into the center strip inside the back, clearly visible through the soundhole, and again on two of the back braces, clearly visible through the soundhole, and again on the neck block; I have never before seen a Schatz with his logo in four places. The back and sides of the guitar are of course beautiful straight-grained Brazilian rosewood, of a wonderfully high quality, typical of the middle-1800s; the back’s center strip is of lovely of wood marquetry. The back binding has been removed by parties unknown, but was of a straightforward type, easily duplicatable. The top is bound in rosewood, with an unusual parallelogram pattern of marquetry with matching triple-parallelogram rosette around the soundhole. The pyramid-style bridge is original and untouched, quite elegant in its lines, with its original ivory saddle in place. The top bracing pattern is a modified fan style, with five fans and two short, angled side braces, very much a mid-19th century style. There are a few top cracks showing evidence of very old, very professional repair, needing some attention after what is quite possibly a century or more. There is one faint back crack, unrepaired. The finish is the original varnish and never compromised in any way. The neck is of the style of the day with separate dovetailed peghead and conical heel; its finish is the original black as well. The tuning machines are original, with engraved baseplates and all of their original genuine ivory buttons. The original bar frets are also intact. This Schatz guitar is a wonderful candidate for mild restoration, needing far less than most instruments that have survived for nearly two centuries. I have had it in my collection for a very long time, untouched, and am now making it available so that it can be brought back as a playing instrument. It is from a time in American history when life moved at a far slower pace; electric power was still decades away. This is the kind of guitar rarely seen on the market today, by one of the premier, most well-known and respected builders of the era. Comes with modern soft case. Offered as is at $2995 w/ssc