Quote:
Originally Posted by Shawn Charniga
The shop (assuming I called the right one, there are two in Dover) is calling it a Mittenwalder and gave the overall length as 72" and the lower bout width as 24". If they are correct about what it is, it's horrendously overpriced.
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A Mittenwald bass with a round back? Rare but possible. Maybe Fussen or Austrian but Germanic in nature. I have seen one German bass slightly similar to this one from the Hamburg area. I would place the origin there. It's funny how the mind works sometimes. After I see enough pics, my mind works like a search engine and tells me what I have seen in the past that was similar. In this case, it was the back block area and the tuners, mainly the handles. What is the string length?
Some better shots of the scroll would also help.
On the value, if this is a mid-late 19th century German or Danish bass from the Hamburg region (which some parts were formerly in the Danish kingdom) then it would be priced in the mid-teens at best IF fully restored (for about that much or close to it!), a string length of at least 40" and a sound that can be used in both a collegiate level orchestra and suitable for solos and auditions. Also, possibly used for a jazz player that will pay this much for a bass that probably needs amplification. It is risky even if it is a good bass or even a pedigree that can be named but would be a little known maker.
So, like I suspected, this is probably NOT a Yankee bass.