A VIOLONCELLO, VENICE, CIRCA 1707, WITH A LATER SCROLL BY MICHELE DECONET

Details

MATTEO GOFFRILLER
A VIOLONCELLO, VENICE, CIRCA 1707, WITH A LATER SCROLL BY MICHELE DECONET
Labelled Mattio Goffriller/Fece in Venetia Anno 1707, length of back 29 5/8 in (753mm), with case (5)

Provenance

The Wurlitzer Collection
Russell B. Kingman
Edgar H. Sittig
Dr. Charles Haff
Present Owner

In 1932 the cello was sold from the collection of The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company to the New Jersey investor and industrialist Russell B. Kingman. Among Kingman's many pursuits he was also an accomplished cellist, avid collector and the first president of the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra. His connoisseurship of fine Italian instruments is best illustrated by his ownership of the 1689 Stradivari cello known as The Archinto, the famous de Munck cello of 1730 and a violin from 1686 known as The Figueroa. His long relationship with Emmanuel Feuermann as both a patron and friend is a further testament to his commitment and love of classical music.

By 1938 Kingman had sold the Goffriller to Edgar H. Sittig a professional cellist and a member of New York's Sittig Trio. According to Ernest N. Doring the cello then passed to the physician and prominent collector Doctor Charles Haff.

In 1948 it was sold to the present owner, a professional musician, by the Philadelphia firm of William Moennig and Son. As relayed to us by the owner, the cello came highly recommended by his teacher Gregor Piatigorsky. It has served as the primary instrument for his solo and chamber music work for the last fifty-seven years.

Lot Essay

Sold with the accompanying certificates:
William E. Hill and Sons, London, November 7, 1932
The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, New York, October 25, 1932
William Moennig and Son, Philadelphia, April 15, 1950

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