'Fecit' is from the Latin facio, to make. 'Anno' is year. The first sentence translates as 'Stradivarius made this in Naples in the year 1725'.

I've no idea who the guys is/was.

Thank you.

I have an old violin.....

What typographer discovered the secret of the famous Stradivarius quality?

There is no "secret"

My guess is that "the guy" (Alexandri Gagliano) was the person who commissioned the violin, perhaps then its first owner.

Are you saying that you own this Strad? If so, I hope you play and very well. It would be a shame for a fine instrument to go unplayed.
By the way, get it insured big time :-)

Chris,

There is no "secret"

According to some academics there is, or rather, was?

Are you saying that you own this Strad?

Yes, my friend. I own that Strad. However, we try to find out if the violin is real Strad or not. The Germans (world war 2) used to "make Strad". But if the violin is real - I'm going to sell it.

Type, just a guess here:

"Alexandri Gagliano Alomnus" could be a misspelled "Alexandri Gagliano Alumnus," latin for pupil, I believe.

Maybe the guy worked under Stradivarius direction.

>But if the violin is real - I'm going to sell it.<

Hopefully to someone who will really play it

Maybe.

Maybe the letters can tell the story of that violin.

lc g & a

<font class="dontLookLikeCrap"><font class="dontLookLikeCrap">Okay, this is odd. I have here in my possession a violin that I played throughout my schooldays. I bought it (actually my parents bought it) in about 1985 and at the time it was about 80 years old. So it's about 100 now. I know that it was made in Germany. It has the exact same sticker that yours has, word for word. It also has a small serial number (33) stamped into the bottom edge of the violin just beneath the stem.

So, either, my violin is a copy of yours (or of one made about the same time as yours by the same person), or yours is also a copy of the same. In my experience as a violinist, many violins have stickers like these inside of them.

I can also confirm that Gagliano was a student of Stradivarius who worked in Naples.

If yours is genuinely a Gagliano, it's quite valuable. But it's pretty unlikely.</font></font>

From the Smithsonian Institute's online Encyclopedia:

"Thousands upon thousands of violins were made in the 19th century as inexpensive copies of the products of great Italian masters of the 17th and 18th centuries. Affixing a label with the master

This is fascinating. Thank you, Alex.

>> "the purchaser knew he was buying an inexpensive violin

Unless it's sold second-hand, in which case it becomes a superb way of fooling people. And some people would buy such a piece exactly with that aim.

>> "A violin's authenticity (i.e., whether it is the product of the maker whose label or
>> signature it bears) can only be determined through comparative study of design,
>> model wood characteristics, and varnish texture.

I guess the way it actually sounds is secondary...

hhp

It also has a small serial number (33) stamped into the bottom edge of the violin just beneath the stem.


My violin: a small serial number - 60 - by... hand



I bought it (actually my parents bought it) in about 1985........

Where?


And thank you for your post

I can't remember the name of the shop, but it was a violin dealer in Studio City, California - which is part of LA, I think... We were there visiting my grandparents over Christmas.

I'm very fond of mine, good sounding instrument.

I am from Italy, I was born in Piacenza, 40 Km from Cremona.

a