7/7 Viola d’amore by J.U. Eberle 1744, Prague, Horniman Museum, London.

This 7/7 Viola d’amore by Eberle, the prolific maker from Prague, shows a lot of similarities to other Viola d’amores by the same maker. The wood for the back and ribs is birds eye maple, a choice seen on other Eberle instruments, and the soundboard is spruce with a maple carved head and neck.

The body length is 40cm and the string length is 36.5cm.

The arching has a steep rise from the edge in the C bouts and is generally full to the outline, another typical feature of bohemian Viola d’amores.

The tailpiece is held hooked over a wooden pin that has been stained black, a method used regularly by Eberle and is likely original because it shows chisel cuts that are the same as those seen on Eberle’s other instruments.

The back of the peg box is closed meaning that the sympathetic strings are fitted to the pegs from the front, a layout also found on the RCM Viola d’amore. The strings travel over a nut at the back and either run over a metal pin or over the first peg before reaching their respective pegs.

The head which is painted and gilded, closely resembles another head on the Viola d’amore held in the museum in Prague, and the carving style is reminiscent of the ornamentation seen on buildings in the city.

Overall, this Viola d’amore is a classic example of a fine bohemian instrument by the most prolific and well known maker of the instrument.