A New Web Site Illustrating the Development of the Early Martin Guitar
Created by Folk and Roots Music Photographer Robert Corwin
Featuring Instruments from the Phyllis, Jerry, and Robert Corwin Collection
Please note: This web site has not been publicly announced yet, and is a work in progress, with lots of holes and place holders.
Not all sections are complete - some have not been started yet. Not all links work. If you've stumbled on this site, feel free to enjoy what's here, and check back for further additions, refinements, and corrections as you wish, knowing it will take some time before the site is finished. It's not perfect, but I thought you might want to take advantage of what we have so far.
I look forward to adding thanks to the many friends and experts who have helped make this possible, and links to other helpful resources.
For the time being, let's please keep this web site our little secret, between you and me!
"perfecting the art of 'guitar porn' ...
This site is an amazing labor-of-love, quite possibly the most in-depth, photo-intensive look ever at old, pre-war (and in many cases antique) Martin guitars … All online and for free."
--Jason Verlinde
The Fretboard Journal
Start here if you're looking for help
Identifying C. F. Martin Guitars
A Martin Timeline
~ FIRST FEATURES ~
Border Patrol
The Head of the Class
Tuner Sandwich
A Stamp of Approval
Pearl Jam
Arrowheads and Other Hidden Treasures
The End Is Near
The Spanish Foot
Speaking Volutes
Feel Like a Heel
A Bridge to Somewhere
All Tied Up
Back in the Saddle
Hear a Pin Drop
Nuts!!!
Something to Fret About
Strung Out
Photo Finish
Knock on Wood
Does Size Matter?
X Marks the Spot
Your Biggest Fan
Safe at Home Plate
A Final Nail in the Coffin
~ EARLY C. F. MARTIN INSTRUMENTS ~
Before the Styles Were Defined
Martin Stauffer Style Guitar
This sibling of the oldest and most notable guitar in the Martin museum is unlabeled, which not only raises questions about this guitar,
but reminds us that the same questions remain concerning Martin's guitar.
These two instruments have small, shallow figure eight shaped bodies with large upper bouts, Stauffer style headstocks with Vienna gears,
and necks with inlaid stripes of ebony, raised angled fretboard extensions, and fabulous ivory and ebony ice cream cone heels with clock key
adjustments.
Both guitars have spruce tops and maple backs and sides, and abalone soundhole designs set in mastic. Both guitars are ladder braced with
a "buttress" under the fretboard extension.
Early C.F. Martin Built Hudson Street Viennese Style Guitar
While the earliest Viennese influenced Martins had a rather small figure eight shaped body with a large upper bout, the Hudson Street label Martins
could be surprisingly large and deep guitars reminiscent of the later Gibson Nick Lucas. All of the earliest Viennese influenced Martins have ladder bracing.
While most people associate the Viennese influenced Martins with Stauffer style headstocks with Viennese gears, many of them originally had slotted headstocks with machines, some of which have been improperly replaced due to misconception.
Most of the Hudson Street Martins have a top border of "thumbprint" inlays as well as the herringbone trim that has distinguished Martins for many years.
Martin & Coupa Early Koa Guitar
Many Martins from the 1840's were affixed with a "Martin & Coupa" label and distributed by New York guitar teacher John Coupa.
This is a typical early Martin parlor guitar, still with the Stauffer Style headstock and Vienna gears, ebonized neck and "ice cream cone" heel, fan bracing, an early precursor
of the Spanish foot which extends the width of the upper bout, and an early version of Martin's typical body shape, with a smaller upper bout than the Viennese influenced
guitars, and a flatter base of the lower bout than found on later Martins.
Martin & Coupa Spanish Style Guitar
This example shows Martin at a critical point in it's evolution. The "Spanish" Martin is a distinct style with specific features clearly showing Martin's awareness of the
pre-Torres guitar in Spain. This guitar retains the features of Martin's earliest Viennese influenced guitars, such as the Stauffer Style headstock, while adding features of
the Spanish guitar.
This fine example of perhaps the earliest of Martin's version of a Spanish guitar has many of the typical Spanish features: cedar neck with elegantly curved Spanish heel,
Spanish style interior false foot, tie style bridge with ivory inset, fan braces, two piece rosewood sides with a simple lengthwise center strip dividing the two pieces, simple
back strip with straight lines extending into the heel, and back with rosewood veneer.
This guitar is also an early example of features which would be hallmarks of Martins design for years to come, such as the ebony pyramid style bridge, and the body shape
with a smaller upper bout than the Viennese influenced guitars.
Martin Spanish Style Guitar
This guitar is a fine example of Martin's version of a Spanish guitar, with all the typical features: cedar neck with elegantly curved Spanish heel, large, square headstock,
flared to a wide end, with pegs, nickel silver nut, Spanish style interior false foot, tie bridge, fan braces, two piece rosewood sides with decorative side filets and a decorative
lengthwise center strip with marquetry dividing the two sections, and back with rosewood veneer.
While having the fancy appearance of perhaps the most jewel like Martin "presentation" guitar existent, with a top border of pearl diamonds set in mastic, and one of the
three basic soundhole designs with rows of small pearl glittering diamonds, this example was clearly built to be played, with a large, long scale, modern feeling
neck, which gives this guitar the feel in hand of a much larger guitar.
fan bracing, ivory tie block bridge, 2 piece sides divided by a longitudinal strip of marquetry, details of internal construction, and a long modern feeling neck.
This unique "Renaissance" shape, however, can be seen on only a handful of early Martin guitars.
But the unique details go further than that. This is the only known example of a Martin with sides tapered to fit the contour of the neck heel in a most elegant fashion.
The neck is a full 2" wide, with a 24.75" scale, and this is one of only two Martins known to have a unique peak on the top of the ivory bound headstock. Besides being
one of the most unusual Martin examples known to exist, the condition is breathtaking, all original and looking like an almost new guitar.
Martin & Coupa Alternate X Braced Guitar
This Martin has what I believe to be the first experimental variation of X-bracing, which appears at about the same time on a handful of both Martin and Schmidt & Maul
Guitars. One such Schmidt & Maul is dated 1845. It is unknown whether the two builder worked together in concert or not.
This example, which is quite close in size to a standard Size 2 Martin, also foreshadows a standard Martin Style 21, with simple, tasteful appointments including
a herringbone rosette and back strip and a top border consisting of simple light and dark lines.
Early Hybrid X Braced Spanish Martin
This Martin, with the same experimental variation of X-bracing as appears on the Martin & Coupa above, also has several distinctive 1840's features including a Spanish
foot, Spanish heel, nickel silver nut, and large abalone fretboard markers on the side of the neck, as well as the colored diamond backstrip, outer rosette rings with a tiny
rope pattern, and checkerboard binding sometimes seen on early Martins.
This early Spanish Style Martin appears in a larger Size 1, with a variant of the classic three ring soundhole rosette with double ivory center rings that later distinguished
the Style 28.
Martin 1840's Alternate X Brace Spanish Style Guitar
This Size 1 Martin has another experimental variant of X bracing, with a large x and the tone bar below the bridge crossing the treble brace of the X
to form another smaller X.
The soundhole of this guitar has a another variation of the diamond rosette, with a center ring of beautiful abalone diamonds. This example also has
features typical of a mid-1840's Martin, including a Spanish foot, Spanish heel, nickel silver nut, large abalone fretboard markers on the side of the neck, and a
large diamond end strip and outer rosette rings with a tiny rope pattern of early Martins and arrowhead backstrip of later 19th century Martins.
Martin X Braced Spanish Guitar
This Spanish Style guitar has been called perhaps the earliest known Martin to feature a mature X brace, basically as it has been made for many years
since. Still with the earliest typical Spanish features such as cedar neck with Spanish heel, two piece rosewood sides with a simple lengthwise center strip dividing
the two pieces, and simple back strip with straight lines extending into the heel.
The heel on this guitar is thicker and not elegantly curved as on early examples, and the Spanish foot has been eliminated.
Martin Ivory Fingerboard Stauffer Style Guitar
Martin sometimes held over features for many years, offering guitars with a mix of features from many periods on request. One such set of features is
the Stauffer Style headstock with Vienna gears on an ebonized neck with ice cream cone heel. This fancy small, size 3 presentation guitar with ivory
clad fingerboard and Vienna gears was most likely built in the 1850's.
This example has the last of the three basic soundhole designs with rows of small pearl diamonds, as well as fancy wood marquetry on the top border, and
on the sides adjacent to the top and back binding. With beautiful Brazilian rosewood veneer over spruce on the back, the earliest features such as the
ebonized neck and ice cream cone heel are combined with mature X braces.
Martin Pearl Rosette and Pendant Guitar
This final example has some of the beautiful decorative details of earlier Martins combined with construction elements that would be standard for years to come.
With a beautiful decorative pearl rosette that could be one of the earliest examples with a continuous bands of pearl as seen on rosettes and borders of pearl Martins until
WWII replacing the rows of tiny diamonds, and an abalone pendant similar to the one seen on early Hudson St. Martins. The guitar is spruce lined, and has Jerome
tuners with bone rollers and beautiful fancy carved pearl buttons.
The body is a size 2 1/2, and the basic appointments follow the form of a Style 30, making this perhaps a $32 guitar. This guitar is perhaps one of the last before
Martin models would become standardized.
~ MARTIN STYLES ~
As They've Been Defined Since the 1850's
Styles 15, 17 & 18
Styles 20, 21 & 22
Styles 23 & 24
Styles 26 & 28
Styles 27, 30 & 34
Styles 40 & 42
Style 45
Martin Mandolins
~ CHECKING OUT THE COMPETITION ~
Orville Gibson
James Ashborn for William Hall & Son
Joseph Bohmann
Johann Stauffer
Schmidt & Maul
Tilton Improvement
~ CLEANING HOUSE ~
I love these, but I really need to make some room for new ones.
Acoustic Instruments for Sale
Electric Instruments for Sale
I am not in the business of buying and selling guitars, but am interested in purchasing specific unique instruments to round out my collection to present you with a web site with as complete a picture as possible to help you learn. I am interested in substantially original examples made from the 1800's to 1960's by Stauffer, Panormo, Schmidt & Maul, C. F. Martin, Martin & Coupa, Martin & Schatz, Martin & Bruno, Martin & Zoebisch, John Coupa, Oliver Ditson, Southern California Music, John Wanamaker, Wm. J. Smith, Wurlitzer, S.S. Stewart, Orville Gibson, the Gibson Company, and the Larson brothers. I am not hunting for bargains, but seeking quality intstruments at a price that is fair to the buyer and seller alike.
To see Robert's new web site illustrating the development of the Martin Guitar, visit:
To see Robert's new web site illustrating the development of the Early Gibson Guitar, visit:
earlygibson.com
To see Robert's new web site illustrating the development of the post-Orville Gibson Guitar, visit:
oldgibson.com
To See Robert Corwin's Classic Photography of Folk and Roots Musicians, visit:
robertcorwin.com
For Information on Photography for
Exhibition, Publication, CD's, Promotion, Web Pages, Tour Books,
to Purchase Photographic Prints, or
To Contact Robert With Questions About An Early Martin Guitar:
e-mail: Robert Corwin
I'm more than happy to answer questions to the best of my limited ability about features of the
instruments I've photographed and studied from luthiers restoring vintage Martins or building new instruments.
The Early Martin and Vintage Martin web pages were first created in September, 2009.
Updated 4/25/12
Entire site copyright ©1998 through 2012 Robert Corwin/Photo-Arts. All rights reserved.
Photographs and written material on this site may not be reproduced without permission.