Lerenzo Bellafontana Violin Label
Hello out there.
Does someone of you have a picture of a real label of a Lerenzo Bellafontana violin? I know that there are some pictures in databases in the internet, but they are not accessable for public or questionable. So if someone could give me a hint I would be very happy!
I lately buyed a fine red violin labelled Lorenzo Bellafontana. Great sound, nice look and very good work. So it is for sure a good violin and quite possible not a copy. If anyone could help me how I could try to upload a picture of the label, i have one already.
Replies (17)
Thanks! I already found a link here: http://preuss.jp/VIOPEDIA/BELLAFONTANA-209.shtml
it is in japanese so I cant read it, but i assume, that the three pictures of labels are examples from "original" signs he used.
Mine is the first one with a sign of Bellafontana. It looks quite original. Makes no big difference in price anyway. It is a good violin and there is no need to sell it for the money you get for a Bellafontana!
Does someone of you played a Bellafontana once, or has some abbitional information about the maker?
So thank you so far!
And if someone could tell me, why uploading pictures doesn't work? it sais "The server didn't reply with a proper XML data. Please check your configuration."
In the Marlin Brinser book the label reproduced is like the first (no. 63) on your link but with the signature like the second (no. 3619).
I do not know how to upload pictures direct onto violinist.com threads. I think a "host url" is needed and this costs money ! I sent a pdf once to someone in the USA who managed to do it for me - I think he has a personal website.
I fixed it so anyone can click on your link directly.
http://preuss.jp/VIOPEDIA/BELLAFONTANA-209.shtml
What you describe is what I got! Thank you very much! Makes me happy that it is quite possible an original.
But doesn' make any difference to me yet, because it is an fine violin anyways! ;)
I had an Idea about uploading a foto ;) :
www.myspace.com/chapeauklez/photos#!/chapeauklez/photos/22211222
On the tracks there its my old violin 5 years ago, so don't judge it too harsh ;)
... a link to a Bellafontana violin - it is unlike ones I have seen in Sotheby's catalogues, but a very good copy of the "Paganini" violin in the museum in Genoa, where Bellafontana worked.
http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/lot_details.aspx?intObjectID=5185574
David, regarding posting pictures - you can upload pictures using one of the free image hosting services, such as ImageShack or Photobucket.com, then post the URL here.
@ Joyce, Thanks ! The only hosts I found wanted my credit-card details !!
@ Simon, It might well be that the Genoese maker and dealer Alberto Giordano is as well qualified as anybody to comment on the authenticity or otherwise of your acquisition, so why not email jpeg (or similar) images of the violin to him (if you have any) and see if he thinks it could be "right" ? I know from experience that Alberto G can write in English. Maybe he has other languages too.
Thank you David very much. I will keep in mind that sending a pdf to this maker once i have the time. For now I am just satisfied with the fact that its for every evidence I know no fake.
I also wonder how someone would not put his own name on such a beautiful violin, but that depends of course on taste too. Also faking a Lorenzo Bellafontana isn't the best deal one can make, because his instruments today seem to be in a range between 7t and 10t, wich is not much at all?!
As far as I know the late Bellafontana violins are all cannon copies. Mine is not, it must be a late exemplar from his period before that, build in 1948. I have been told, that the model is in style of Maggini and it has a beautiful dark red varnish.
I did absent-mindedly post pdf instead of jpeg. As you see I corrected it by editing. I hope that's not caused a problem !
Thanks for that link. Yes I wondered a little about the pdf format. But jpeg is easy to create. Wonder why the violin link you posted is the 20t-50t $ section. Maybe faking a Bellafontana is not the worst idea ;-)
If I make some pictures and send it to Alberto Giardano, I'll post the results if you like and if there will be any.
Best regards
As Lyndon seems to be suggesting, any final decision on authenticity has to be done "in real life" by an expert whose expertise extends to the type of merchandise involved. It might be necessary, for example, to examine the interior of a violin in much the same way as a colonoscopy is done !
Sending photos might still be useful, however, because if, say, Alberto Giordano (backed by someone else) were to say the violin is quite definitely "not right" then the expense of taking further action such as travelling to have it seen by a big-time expert might be saved. If his verdict were to be "maybe" then, Simon, the next step would be to pay a big-time guru his/her huge fee and await the verdict !
As I posted already:- "However, a label is easily reproduced.."
hey dudes, thanks for your statements. But I think you don't have to be worried about me. First I didn't pay too much for that violin. Second its a great (sounding) Instrument and I have played some great Instruments for much more money too. So I don't want to sell it anyways and if I will, I know, that I have to go to a violinmaker with good expertise to get a certificate... or not.
I will post some more pictures soon if I find the time, then you will see.
Compared to the violins in the internet going under the name Bellafontana mine looks quite different. But I know he changed his style during his life. If its real it must be from the end of his earlier period before switching to the cannone model, wich seems to be more famous.
Just for you to know: I just research because I am interested. If it turns out to be a fake, I will not be disappointed at all, because I know its a great sounding instrument wich fits m playing at the moment very well. Plus I will definetily get the money back if I resell, just because its sound is so powerful and solid, with great flexibility too, that its for sure a good violin.
Also I have a quite good eye for violins myself, so that I know that the craftmanship is very refined. In the inside some things look a bit cheap so to say, but it doesnt seem to be a problem for the sound or the playability at all.
Pictures on the way!
ok, I just made the worst fotos you can imagine. ;) One cannot see anything on it so I have to wait for daylight... good night
When a violin works for you, the originality of the violin means very little. If I have a real Stradivarius but it's a dud, so what? I'd rather have a working violin with no label.
Enjoy your violin! ;)
Best, of course, to show the instrument to someone who knows Genovese instruments.
One small thing.... I can't recall seeing a Bellafontana that didn't bear his brand on the interior.
There is one interesting thing about labels that not everybody knows: Labels roughly after the 2nd world war were made from bleached paper and that shows in UV light. I may help to determine if a label is from a later date.
years later... I figure, that I have a UV-light in my room... :D ... it seems to be bleached. So that means it could be from around the 50's? Wasn't the paper in later violins also bleached. So that a fake label would also glow in UV light?
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August 24, 2011 at 02:27 PM ·
In the book "Dictionary of Twentieth Century Italian Violin Makers" by Marlin Brinser © 1978 (ISBN 0-9602298-1-7) there's a reproduction of a label, page 72.
However, a label is easily reproduced, so you would need some extra evidence to prove whether or not the violin's genuine. The instrument might still be OK if not actually by Bellafontana - some later Italian guy who was himself a good maker might have stuck in the ticket to gat a better price - that's what sometimes happened ! For example, there are "Pedrazzinis" actually made by his nephew, Natale Novelli but labelled as Pedrazzini - and countless "Scarampellas" made by Gadda - still very good fiddles.