Bow Maker's Marks

February 7, 2005 at 05:27 AM · Could some kind person help me on this? I have a couple of old bows, and on removing the frog, discovered Roman numerals scratched on the wood beneath (e.g XXXII). What might this indicate? Many thanks.

Replies (2)

Jim W. Miller

February 7, 2005 at 06:02 AM · Never seen or heard of it. Roman numerals imply date - withe the Roman calendar and all. It might mean 1932.

PS, on second thought, I think I have seen this somewhere in the dim past. They're long thin scratches taking up a whole octagon side aren't they? Now I'm curious about it too.

Michael Avagliano

February 7, 2005 at 03:39 PM · Many German production shops used Roman numerals. It's how they kept track of which frogs went with which sticks, similar to the letter-stamping method used by the Hills.

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