This viola has not been cut down to the modern standard and, despite damage, is more or less intact. The tailpiece appears to be original but the matching fingerboard is modern. The base of the neck is branded with a W or an M, probably a mark of ownership that is found on other instruments by the Amati. A link with the Medici family has been suggested without much supporting evidence. It was acquired in Naples in the late 18th century by the diplomat, Sir William Hamilton.

Provenance: Presented by W. E. Hill & Sons.

From Wikipedia

Born in Cremona, Girolamo was the youngest son of Andrea Amati and brother of Antonio Amati. Girolamo worked, probably from 1575, with his brother, in his father’s workshop. With the latter, he refined his construction technique and style. For about ten years, they co-signed their works with their Latinized names: “Antonius & Hieronymus Amati”.

Girolamo slightly increased the size of his instruments, compared to those of his father.

His son, Nicolò Amati (1596-1684), whom he trained in the workshop, was the master of Andrea Guarneri and possibly of Antonio Stradivari and Francesco Rugeri.

Object description
Type: Musical instrument
Location: Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
Material: Wood
Artist: Girolamo Amati (c. 1561-1630)
Date: 1592

Image Details
Date: 28 March 2024
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/31s
ISO: 400
Licensing: Image of an Ashmolean Museum asset. This image cannot be licensed.

This small instrument, made in 1564, is the earliest known dated violin. The motto on the sides, PIETATE ET IUSTITIA (by piety and justice), and the emblems on the back identify it as one of a set of instruments commissioned from Andrea Amati for the court of the French king. Charles IX (1550-74).
The pattern for the modern violin was probably set by Andrea Amati in 16th-century Cremona. His workshop, taken over by his sons, Girolamo and Antonio, and then by Girolamo’s son, Nicolo Amati, made Cremona the centre of the violin world.

Provenance: Presented by W. E. Hill & Sons.

From Wikipedia

Born in Cremona, Girolamo was the youngest son of Andrea Amati and brother of Antonio Amati. Girolamo worked, probably from 1575, with his brother, in his father’s workshop. With the latter, he refined his construction technique and style. For about ten years, they co-signed their works with their Latinized names: “Antonius & Hieronymus Amati”.

Girolamo slightly increased the size of his instruments, compared to those of his father.

His son, Nicolò Amati (1596-1684), whom he trained in the workshop, was the master of Andrea Guarneri and possibly of Antonio Stradivari and Francesco Rugeri.

Object description
Type: Musical instrument
Location: Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
Material: Wood
Artist: Girolamo Amati (c. 1561-1630)
Date: 1592

Image Details
Date: 28 March 2024
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/33s
ISO: 400
Licensing: Image of an Ashmolean Museum asset. This image cannot be licensed.

This small violin of 1683 follows the work of Nicolo Amati but has a sturdier appearance.

Only ten other decorated instruments by Stradivari are known. All were probably made for important clients. This violin is named after a former owner, the composer and pianist Cipriani Potter (1792-1871).

Provenance: Presented by W. E. Hill & Sons.

From Wikipedia

Antonio Stradivari (/ˌstrædɪˈvɑːri/, also US: /-ˈvɛəri/, Italian: [anˈtɔːnjo stradiˈvaːri]; c. 1644 – 18 December 1737) was an Italian luthier and a craftsman of string instruments such as violins, cellos, guitars, violas and harps. The Latinized form of his surname, Stradivarius, as well as the colloquial Strad are terms often used to refer to his instruments. It is estimated that Stradivari produced 1,116 instruments, of which 960 were violins. Around 650 instruments survive, including 450 to 512 violins. His instruments are considered some of the finest ever made, and are extremely valuable collector’s items.

Object description
Type: Musical instrument
Location: Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
Material: Wood
Artist: Antonio Stradivari (1644?-1737)
Date: 1683

Image Details
Date: 28 March 2024
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/50s
ISO: 200
Licensing: Image of an Ashmolean Museum asset. This image cannot be licensed.

The Messiah has been rarely played and shows little signs of wear. A former owner boasted that he had an untouched violin by Stradivari but never showed it, prompting the soloist, Delphin Alard, to say that it was like the Messiah, “always expected but never appears”, This, it seems, is the origin of its present name. In the 1855, it was purchased by Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume who lengthened the neck and added a new sound bar, ornate pegs and a tailpiece representing the birth of Christ.

Provenance: Presented by W. E. Hill & Sons.

From Wikipedia

Antonio Stradivari (/ˌstrædɪˈvɑːri/, also US: /-ˈvɛəri/, Italian: [anˈtɔːnjo stradiˈvaːri]; c. 1644 – 18 December 1737) was an Italian luthier and a craftsman of string instruments such as violins, cellos, guitars, violas and harps. The Latinized form of his surname, Stradivarius, as well as the colloquial Strad are terms often used to refer to his instruments. It is estimated that Stradivari produced 1,116 instruments, of which 960 were violins. Around 650 instruments survive, including 450 to 512 violins. His instruments are considered some of the finest ever made, and are extremely valuable collector’s items.

Object description
Type: Musical instrument
Location: Ashmolean Museum, Oxford
Material: Wood
Artist: Antonio Stradivari (1644?-1737)
Date: 1716

Image Details
Date: 28 March 2024
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/28s
ISO: 500
Licensing: Image of an Ashmolean Museum asset. This image cannot be licensed.

From the Ashmolean website:

This gallery contains many instruments given to the Ashmolean in the 1930s and 1940s by the distinguished London firm of violin makers, Messrs W.E. Hill and Sons.

Several of the instruments are among the rarest and most beautiful of their kind and include pieces by Stradavari and Amati, and the collection is studied by instrument makers the world over.

The instruments are grouped by type and all highlight the skills of the master craftsmen who made them. The guitars in particular show some particularly fine examples of mother-of-pearl inlay and intricate design. Contents of other cases display the skill of the wood carver in adorning various parts of the instrument. A wall case shows the various processes and components involved in making a violin.

Three walls of the gallery are hung with enormous tapestries and embroideries from the 17th century. The embroidered hanging of A Musical Party shows instruments similar to the ones on display here and gives a snapshot of courtly life. Tapestries and embroidered hangings gave insulation and colour to rooms in castles, palaces and monasteries and could be rolled up and stored in hot weather. They were luxury goods and extremely expensive to make as they were woven or stitched from full-sized designs in professional workshops. They often commanded a higher market value than paintings by famous artists as they were so time consuming to produce.

Image Details
Date: 28 March 2024
Camera body: iPhone Xs
Lens: Wide Camera 26mm ƒ/1.8
Focal Length: 26mm
Aperture: ƒ/1.8
Shutter Speed: 1/25s
ISO: 400
Licence: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International