Lady Blunt

In June 2011, a Stradivari violin known as the ‘Lady Blunt’ was auctioned at Tarisio’s in New York for a whopping $15.9 million, a world record. Such a price might put into perspective why a cultural artifact has attained such a meaning and almost archetypal status.

It is easy to see why the ‘Lady Blunt’ has such an intrinsic value: it is one of a handful of Stradivari instruments in unworn condition – crisp edges and an almost intact red-brown varnish layer, basically as it left the Stradivari workshop.

The 1721 violin at auction was accompanied by its original fingerboard, soundpost, and bass bar, all removed by Vuillaume in 1864 before being sold to Lady Anne Blunt, granddaughter of Lord Byron. The violin retains its original neck with the letters PG painted inside the pegbox identifying the type of mould used, which determines the outline of the instrument.