GeorgeH

Thanks for your comments and interest.

Thanks, Andreas. Yes, I plan on showing it to David, although I believe the maker's brands are legitimate. I am just trying to figure out where this model/style came from. It could be the maker was an autodidact, but the workmanship seems better and more practiced than that.

Yes, that is what I am talking about. The top does not flatten at the corners; it is raised (convex) right up to the purfling. It is hard to capture in a picture, but I think this shows what I am trying to explain. Is that what some Hungarian makers did? Even though the rib corners are flush with the plate corners, the rib miters don't look BOB to me. I am fairly certain that it is an American violin made by a single maker. Just quirky, to me.

Well, the maker is not in any references nor are there any other examples of his/her work that I can find. The linings are don't look like they are let into the blocks. I think it is too quirky to be a Mitty or a Markie. In my limited experience, I have never seen arching that goes into the corner like this. I am just curious if anybody has seen this style, or if this maker is copying another maker.

This early 20th century violin bears the brand of an obscure American maker on the inside back and on the top block. LOB is 358mm. Besides the 5-ply purfling, the manner in which the arching extends up to the purfling in the corners is unusual to me. My question is this the work of someone using a personal model, or someone who was following another’s model? If the latter, can somebody identify the model?

It is easier to confirm that a violin is in-tune by tuning it than it is by just playing the open fifths.

And the varnish bubbles...

Here is a violin by the late John Sipe c. 1977 showing severe varnish failure. Apparently, this began happening on his violins during his lifetime, and he would re-varnish them gratis to replace the defective soft varnish.

To @Michael Darnton's point, heat exposure can damage varnish in exactly this way, and I don't think that one should automatically dismiss this possibility and assume that it is always passive varnish failure over time. The attached picture is a door that was exposed to heat showing varnish blistering.

Hard to tell from the pictures but the rib miters do not look like a typical German BOB trade instrument to me. @Ryan.webs, it look like the neck is coming loose, so be careful handling it, and don't try to set it up because it could cause severe damage.

Very nice, thank you. I love seeing the different approaches to antiquing or not.

Can you post a picture of the bottom rib and the front and back of the scroll? Also a picture of the entire back showing the button and profile pictures of the body and rib miters.

Thanks @jacobsaunders and @martin swan! That is good information to get started.