Possibly 1930’s ‘The Ellis’ banjo mandolin

[Karen Down Under]

Hi, can anyone give me any info on an old banjo mandolin a friend has asked me about? The brand is ‘THE ELLIS’ and it has 2 old faded palm trees on the skin or whatever you call the round bit!! Inside of the case looks to be red velvet. I don’t think I can post pics here. It I do have 3.. Thanks! ( :

[Timbofood]

Some pictures would be a lot of help, if you can get some.

[Karen Down Under]

Can I post pics here?

[CarlM]

Yes. There is an icon when you go to write your posting on the top. On my computer it is the third from the right and has a little colored square. It is next to the filmstrip for video posting. You will get a pop up when you click it that allows you to insert a file or a link to a url.

[Karen Down Under]

Sorry. Had to go to desktop version to access ability to add pics.

[Ray(T)]

Looks like a typical, British made, banjo mandolin from the 1920s/30s. The palm trees on the head could have been added at any stage as could “The Ellis”; perhaps by a shop/importer or even a teacher. These are neither rare nor valuable and crop up regularly. Not sure about the tuners though; they buttons look typical for one of these. Don’t book your cruise just yet but I do like the dust!

[Karen Down Under]

Thanks for that. What should I tell the owner it’s worth?

[Jim Garber]

I have some method books from the UK under Ellis name.

[Jim Garber]

I have some method books from the UK under Ellis name.

Here is an article about Herbert Ellis: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Herbert_J._Ellis

[Ray(T)]

Interesting info Jim. I suspect that the B/M was simply an off-shoot of the instructional material then - a generic maker with the badge nailed on.

As for value - in OZ, I’ve no idea but in the UK not very much - whatever you can get for it.