Viol, possibly bass

Description

This viol has several features that are typical of the sixteenth century: the tailpiece, mounted on a hook bar, the sloping upper back, the indented middle bouts with pointed corners, and the c-shaped sound holes with central nicks. The ball-like scroll with a single central flute is an early variant of the scroll head in its more familiar form. The three-lobed gothic rose is placed over a strengthening bar, which cuts across the opening. This is a type of viol, found elsewhere in northern Italy, which may also have been made in Spain or for the Spanish market.