The secrets behind the tree rings of Stradivari's violins. Professor Paolo Cherubini

Abstract

The prime factor which affects the market value of a work of art is its authenticity. String instruments are among the most valued works of art, particularly those made by the old violin-making masters of northern Italy in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. Their authenticity is difficult to be verified on the basis of style and design alone, as these were often copied or forged. The only analysis that can objectively indicate, if not the exact year an instrument was made, at least the date before which it certainly was not made is a dendrochronological analysis of the wood used to make the instrument. We will review the dendrochronological studies done to assess the authenticity of the instruments made by the old Italian masters, bringing the example of the controversial dating of the famous violin "The Messiah" attributed to Antonio Stradivari. Such studies help to establish the earliest date the tree from which the wood was taken could have been felled, and to determine the source region of the wood. I will present the main achievements and challenges that have arisen in the past 50 years, and discuss the limitations and potential of using dendrochronological methods to establish the provenance and time period in which an instrument was made. Finally, I will describe needs of research in history, wood anatomy, biochemistry and dendrochronology, proposing some new methods that may open up new avenues of research and aid in the assessment of the authenticity of old string instruments.