Henry Ford’s Classical Violins

Violin, 1709 Antonio Stradivari Cremona, Italy . 33.250.5

Antonio Stradivari (circa 1644-1737) was the leading stringed-instrument maker in Cremona, Italy—an important center of stringed instrument production—from the 1680s until the 1730s.  Ford’s 1709 violin was made during Stradivari’s “golden era” (1700-1720), a period which saw the creation of violins of extremely high quality and exquisite precision.  Ford’s 1709 Stradivari violin got its name—“the Siberian”—because it was once owned by a Russian amateur violinist named Thieme who lived in Siberia.  Thieme had purchased the violin from Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume (1798-1875), an illustrious French violinmaker.