Early Guitars and Vihuela

A network for historic guitars and vihuelas

Please does anyone in England have a 'labelled' London-made guitar by Pons which i could have some information on, or come and see? I'd prefer to hear directly please (to receive photos) at j@theguitarmuseum.com OR if you know someone who owns a London-made Pons

guitar please let me know. Also if anyone knows of a harp-guitar by J. Grosjean, again only labelled ones please, (the V&A's is attributed, not labelled).  Thank you! 

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Hello James

The only Pons i know branded is the Basel museum' one…… It is a particularity of Pons to not brand guitars, especially those made in London…

All the best

Françoise

Thank you for adding to the discussion, but i didn't mention 'brianing'? I actually meant either one with a paper label or one with their name engraved to a pearl plaque on the head.

Hello James,

What is "brianing"?

Sorry for my english, but I don't understand.

Daniel

my bad typing, I meant  'branding'
Pons are most often not branded!

Interesting.

 

So how does one then know it's a Pons??

 

PS: What do you mean by "branded"?

Is that when the luthier indicates his name (or symbol) on the instrument?

Do you mean the inclusion of a label, when you say "branded"; or do you only mean the marking of inner (or possibly outer) wood with a hot iron, to produce a black "burned" branding mark?

Hello, 

By "branded" we mean the luthier put his own iron brand (his name) inside the guitar, sometimes hidden under in a discreet place. Music sellers put generaly theirs paper labels readable through the soundhole. In Mirecourt (and sometimes in Paris) workers dont put anything, and it is the job of expert to regonize the luthier's work examinating the inside building, blocks, bracing, linnings, small marks of positionnement, wood, warnish, bridges, heads, etc. etc., not only read the brand (which can be added by a dealer)…… And Pons when he worked in London (probably not alone but with workers) never branded his guitars. He didnt brand all the guitars he made in France… It is the difficulty with the guitars made by the french luthiers of the 19th century to authenticate theirs works because, same as for violins, there were mostly unbranded or unsigned inside… 

All the french lutherie of the 19th century was organized by this way : luthiers who generally didnt sign > sellers who often signed…

yes branding means hot iron mark, but the 'London' Pons didn't do this, and I never said that he/they did. Pons usually engraved his name to a piece of pearl on the headstock. So thats how we know they were by Pons (plus stylistic and constructional features  of course)

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