Hill Bow:
correction
On page 71 of our magazine, we published a photo of a Hill bow that had been stamped. We included an explanation of the meaning of the letter and number stamps used by the Hill company. We received a response from two experts, who pointed out that the explanation was incorrect. The experts provided sources that we consulted, which indeed confirmed that the explanation given in the magazine was incorrect.
Stamps
The correct explanation is as follows: letters were stamped on the sleeve and the rod to indicate that they belonged together. This was necessary because a bow maker would sometimes work on six or ten pieces at a time. Each shaft and its corresponding ferrule were marked with the same letter; in the case of the bow pictured, that letter was “J.” In addition to the letter, two digits are also branded into the shaft of our bow. These digits indicate a year. Usually, a number refers to the year in which the bow was made, but it can sometimes also indicate the year in which the bow was registered. And that could have been much later than the year of manufacture. Our bow is branded with “26”; so the bow was either made in 1926 or registered in that year.
With thanks to Matthieu Besseling and Henk te Hietbrink.
Photo: René Gerritsen
Sources:
- An interview with Willian (Bill) Watson, one of the Hill bow makers;
- a letter from the Hill company dated 1982;
- the book *The Hill Bow Makers 1880–1962* by John Milne and Derek Wilson, published by the British Violin Making Association.