Little Bass ID

[Ken Smith]

Well, it is a mess and yes, don't bother fixing this for monetary reasons. For learning, it's a good piece to play with. It would be rewarding I am sure to see a cellist play this in an orchestra once fixed and slightly modified.

One thing of importance here is that the Ribs went into a slot cut around the inner edges of both the top and back. This is how Prescott made some if not all of his basses. I would assume some as I haven't seen but a few and who knows what experiments he made over time. This is a furniture-style joint like a drawer divider in a desk. It is the Yankee self taught method of basses of both sizes from the 19th century.

Who made it where or when?

I would say American, 19th century, maybe in the northeast. That's as close as I would venture to say.