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2007/97/1 Double bass, red brown varnish, European Spruce / European Maple / Australian Cedar / brass / paper, made by John Devereux, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 1856. Click to enlarge.
  • Image 1 of 1, 2007/97/1 Double bass, red brown varnish, European Spruce / European Maple / Australian Cedar / brass / paper, made by John Devereux, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 1856. Click to enlarge

Double bass made by John Devereux

John Devereux is one of the earliest violin makers known to have been working in Australia and is seen as Australia's first professional bowed string instrument maker. He had a significant reputation and output from the 1860s to 1880s and was a contemporary of Australia's other great maker of this period William Dow, also of Melbourne. Born in England in 1810, Devereux arrived in Australia in 1854 from London where he had been working in the workshop of violin maker Bernhard Simon Fendt …

Summary

Object No.

2007/97/1

Object Statement

Double bass, red brown varnish, European Spruce / European Maple / Australian Cedar / brass / paper, made by John Devereux, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 1856

Physical Description

A three string double bass made in European Spruce, Maple and Australian Cedar. The belly is made in two parts of European Spruce, the ribs are made of European Maple and the back is made in two pieces of Australian Cedar. The neck and decorative carved scroll are also made in European Maple. There are brass tuning machines and plates on either side of the peg box. The double bass is finished in an orange based, red brown spirit varnish. An early but non-original label is fixed to the inside.

Marks

A paper label has been fixed to the inside which can be viewed through one F-hole. The text on the centre of the label in black pen reads; 'Built By / J Devereaux (sic)/ London 1856'. A signature 'J. Devereaux (sic)' has been written diagonally across the text. LHS of the centre text handwritten in brown 'Repaired by / RG Lindsay / High & Wattle Sts [illeg.] / 1-5-1895'. RHS of the centre text handwritten; 'RF Gray / Tempus Fecit / AD 1891-Tempus Fuga / Cremona / Lo...T [illeg.] / Bendigo'. Underneath the centre text handwritten in brown; 'Reconditioned G S Caldwell / Kinlough 1-5-1939 / 11 Mollison St. Bendigo'.

Short URL

https://ma.as/366678

Dimensions

Height

1990 mm

Width

655 mm

Depth

385 mm

Source

Credit Line

Purchased with the assistance of the Australian Government through the National Cultural Heritage Account and supporters of the Powerhouse Museum Foundation and the Pinchgut Opera, 2007

Acquisition Date

30 July 2007

Cite this Object

Harvard

Double bass made by John Devereux 2023, Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, accessed 27 March 2023, <https://ma.as/366678>

Wikipedia

{{cite web |url=https://ma.as/366678 |title=Double bass made by John Devereux |author=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences |access-date=27 March 2023 |publisher=Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences, Australia}}

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