(Serial No. none) Joseph Bohmann was born in Germany and immigrated to the US in 1868 and settled in Chicago. This mandolin was built to showcase the Bohmann mandolin at the Paris Exposition of 1900. In fact, that phrase is written on the pickguard. This is a typical bowlback of the period with a canted top of Adirondack spruce. The bowl is Brazillian rosewood with 38 ribs, interlaced between each rib with a strip of lighter colored wood. The are 6 (or 10, depends how you count them) layers of binding. The fretboard is engraved abalone and pearl. The back of the neck is overlaid with genuine tortoise shell, and the front pickguard is tortose shell as well. The small volute on the back of the peghead is snail pearl. The tuners are enclosed with an engraved German silver backplate dated 1891. The tuners are fitted with Handel buttons inlaided with pearl and silver wire, and the tailpiece is one piece cast bronze. The bridge is Brazillian rosewood. Comes with a period case.
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