Classical Cremonese Violin Soundhole Placement

by Michael Darnton

Originally published in American Lutherie #76, 2003 and Big Red Book of American Lutherie Volume Seven, 2013



Several systems have been proposed to explain the layout of Cremonese violin f-holes. The only surviving pieces of evidence we have, other than the instruments themselves, are some Stradivari drawings. After passing through the possession of Stradivari’s son Paolo, and a series of Italian connoisseurs and makers, the drawings are now in the Stradivari Museum in Cremona. They are also reproduced in S.F. Sacconi’s book, The “Secrets” of Stradivari.

Sacconi also provided photos of marks inside violins which corresponded to some of those in the drawings, but the details of how those drawings were generated and what actual workshop method would have been used for placing the holes on violins is unknown. I believe that some aspects of the drawings are absolutely misleading.