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I'm no expert, but ... When the seller claims there are over 300 years represented here ... I have to question his mathematical methodology. The two "mandolinettos" on either side look very modern, and the "piccolo-mandolina" in the middle doesn't look that much older.
Seems they’ve been restored to look like they did when they were new… 200-300 years ago.
Back then people didn’t play antique-looking instruments, hand-made looking maybe.
But the style is like 1950’s?
Another reason why I don’t have a facebook account!
So Jo, I’ll bet you’ve seen some of your production listed as ‘rare antique’ too!
I think all German-made. Left is a Wappen-style. I like the modernistic Halloween look of the one on the right.
His baroque mandolins and renaissance mandores sure look stunning. I would love to try one.
Deciphering the logo burned into the "jack-o-lantern" model on the right: DROM?
Right you are:
What does D. R. G. M. mean? This mark can be found on many antique items that were made in Germany and Austria from 1891 until just before the end of the Second World War 1945. The mark D. R. G. M. stands for Deutsches Reich Gebrauchs Muster this is a utility model patent for commercially applicable inventions. D. R. P. or D. R Pat.
Most accurate dating I find is 1891-1951; this would establish -- within a broad range -- the vintage of at least one of the mandolins. Similar to "patented" or a patent date on US-made items (UK too, I think...?).
QUOTE=Dusepo;1837778]Wappen means shield, as in a coat of arms, hence the name and shape. And yes, very German design. :)[/QUOTE]
Seems you didn't catch the reference? I was being facetious, referring to the "womp womp" sound used to indicate sympathy, usually mockingly:
I've always heard this in my mind as just two notes, but I couldn't find such an example. Yeah, I know - womp womp! :(
But if I may veer into seriousness, for a moment ... Is anyone going to hazard a guess as to these instruments' ages? I believe that was the root cause for this thread, since the seller makes an unsubstantiated claim regarding their substantial - to his mind - vintages.
Another way to look at the claim is that the 300 years is the SUM of the three ages, which still is probably wrong. Pretty often this accounting is found in a small company advertising ‘n years of experience’ when they’re just adding up the employees tenures, not the age of the outfit. A semantic snakebite.