My bass has that carving
It visited Arnold in 2010 so it may be the one you saw there, Ken. When I picked up my bass, Arnold showed me the bass he had built for you.
Because he had not seen that carving before, Arnold thought it might have been added by a creative luthier at some point. I guess it should also match the back of the scroll in some way if it were original.
"I still think the button carving was done after the bass was built. My only reason ,though, is that I've never seen it before. The bass is German, likely late 19th century, in my opinion." Arnold
Anyway, this may or not be someone's signature but I enjoy my bass.
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