Violin for sale - 18th century Austrian violin by Johannes Radeck

FOR SALE: 18th century Austrian violin by Johannes Radeck, 1731-1795.



An 18th century Austrian violin by Johannes Radeck, 1731-1795. Overall length 22.75". Original varnish slightly worn at belly. Some chipping of plates. Excellent playing condition with strong rich tone. Professional repair work in 1997 by James O'Halloran, Cork, Ireland (see below).

The printed label states, "Johann Radeck b�rgerl. Lauten-und Gegenmacher fecit Viennae 17--".

An attempt to overwrite the printed date, with pen and ink and by hand, appears to have been made, probably in 1801. Natural fading of the handwriting makes it difficult to be sure what date was intended by the writer, but any date on a Radeck label after his death in 1795 would suggest the instrument was assembled by someone else using parts made by Radeck himself. This suggestion is compatible with known facts of Radeck's life and death.

In his Will of February 17, 1795, Johannes Radeck left 50 violin tables, and other parts, to each of his former luthier friends and colleagues, Philipp Jakob Wurm (1729-1803), Jakob Fux (1753-1819) and Franz Geissenhoff (1753-1821), (see Viennese Stringed Instrument Makers, 1700-1800: Richard Maunder, Journal of the Galpin Society Oxford, Vol.52, April 1999). It is probable that one of these men completed this instrument after Radeck�s death, using the parts, including the original printed labels, inherited from Radeck. Then, it would appear, he altered the date on the label according to the date of completion of the instrument and, perhaps, to distinguish Radeck�s work from his own.

Restoration Work carried out by James O�Halloran, Cork, Ireland 1997 includes,

(1) Rejoining the neck to the upper block (2) Strengthening the tables at the blocks with new wood (3) Strengthening the joint in the belly with grafted diamond patches (4) Re-stringing