Black Forest, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Unknown Maker

Wood, metal, ebony, paint
ca. Early 1900’s
Length: 22 inches
Strings – Lutes – Violin Family

This folk fiddle is made with a black pepper metal box resonator, and a Black Forest folk art carving for the peghead.  The carving includes a painted man’s head, with facial features, and a partial suite,  A trigger for mouth animation is in the back and the pepper box is in English on side and German on the opposite side. The bottom portion of the fiddle has bridge, tailpiece with pin, and a chinrest.  This part looks like a Rickenbacker electric violin, c. 1938, made in Los Angeles.   This is a professional playing instrument, not a souvenir.

The Black Forest is a large, forested mountain range in south-west Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, bounded by the Rhine valley to the west and south. It is the source of the Danube and Neckar Rivers.