Royce J.

But how does it sound?

If that's the worst thing Mr. Saunders ever calls you, you're getting off easy.

...and give me a boost!

I looked at cello bows, just out of curiosity. Unstamped, unattributed, nickel-mounted bows are expected to bring at least $800 or in some instances more than double that. Seems a bit optimistic to me, but it's certainly proof that I'd have no business bidding.

This made me nostalgic for my old Jakob Winter case. It was an old design, possibly made of plywood IIRC, and not that protective, but fine for my needs. It was about the most compact cello case possible, and it just oozed "quality". Sorry but I have no idea about current cases.

I have a guess which I will not reveal unless I turn out to be right, but I'd appreciate a verdict from someone who actually knows something. Thanks!

Just a scratch. It has quite a few. Luthier had the top off and gave it a thorough inspection. Thanks.

Thanks so much for replies! Jacob, I'm happy to report there are no soundpost cracks, back or front, but I will work on my photography skills. And thanks Blank face for the information. So it may be 120 years old, or even older. And I see now that the label has been trimmed around the outer edge, maybe to hide signs of having been removed from another instrument.

This is my recent acquisition. I've been told it is a Markneukirchen cello about 100 years old. This is the label inside. My luthier took the top off for a couple of repairs and observed that there were fake corner blocks, a carved-in bass bar along with some pretty rough work on the underside of the top. Everything you can see through the f-holes looks great, but the maker obviously cut corners (groan) where it wouldn't show in order to save time. I have to doubt that Metropolitan Music would have labeled this cello as their top-of-the-line given it's obviously a rush job. You see above the label that was in it. Interestingly, my luthier said that the top has never been off before. That seems pretty good for a hundred year old cello. The label does look like some of the Master Art labels of the nineteen twenties and thirties. It's pretty worn, but is there anything about it that's a dead giveaway that it's fake? I don't know why I even care, really. This cello plays and sounds wonderful. I'll never be a good enough player to need a better cello. I think I'll keep her. It seems that Juzek can be a hot topic here, so I hope I haven't annoyed anyone. All replies appreciated, thanks.

It sounds wonderful, thank you! My other cello is an unlabeled Chinese that I bought secondhand but virtually unused ten years ago. It has some gorgeous wood and quite a lovely tone, but next to this one sounds a little thin. This one is just richer and fuller sounding. There's just more there there (steal from the best, I always say). Definitely a keeper. I'll never be as good as it is.

A little update: I want to thank everyone for their replies. I have the cello back and I absolutely love it. Mr. Saunders is certainly correct, while it may have been built in some haste, with some corners cut in construction (pun in there somewhere), it looks and sounds wonderful. I'd be insane to have someone try to "improve" it. I'm not sure a "genuine" Juzek Master Art could please me more.

My first attempt to post photos, I hope these are OK. In person, on the back the dark areas are much redder, and the light areas yellow/orange. Here they just look brown to me. The top is more brown.

Thanks for the replies. I think they were being sincere. I'm sure my luthier is pushing 80, if not dragging it behind him... He's seen a lot of cellos over the decades and probably knows a well-crafted instrument when he sees one. Every time I see him he mentions all the awful Ebay, etc. instruments that folks bring him, and how he has to tell them that they're not even worth working on. I have the cello home now, and I think it sounds great, better than my 10-year old Chinese cello which I've always thought sounded quite good. I've tried to post pictures without success (I think Maestronet is having some issues around that). Eventually I should be able to post some.