~1900 C. Bruno "The Vernon" parlor guitar

Though this lovely little parlor guitar has an over sized replacement bridge it retains much of its original charm and character. The lower bout width of 12 1/4" makes this a great little guitar to pick while lounging around the front porch. The guitar has solid Brazilian rosewood back and sides with a solid spruce top, multi-colored marquetry top purfling and wide wood marquetry rosette and a beautiful abalone tree of life inlaid in the fret board. The neck is mahogany and the fret board appears to be ebony. Though this guitar was previously listed by another dealer as having been made in the 20s by Regal, the heel of the neck is archaic in shape and size suggesting late 19th century manufacture, certainly not much later than 1900. The 'diamond' marquetry back strip is another aspect of the guitar that likely dates it to the late 19th century rather than the 20th. The maker is likely to have been C. Bruno out of Boston, as the "Vernon" name is associated with that manufacturer. The top is ladder braced, all interior bracing is original and intact. The top and back are crack free, one side has a short and tight hairline crack that is visible only on close inspection, has been repaired properly. The finish on the top, sides and neck appear to be original and in very good condition. The top finish shows a slight 'shadow' of where a tail piece was once installed over the top, and there are three plugged mounting screw holes at the end block from that tail piece. The back finish is in very good condition as well but looks to have been oversprayed professionally, well done. The neck was reset at some point, the angle is very good making for excellent playability. The guitar is strung with .11-.52" steel and the action is low and comfortable, excellent for fingerstyle play. The original bar frets are in good shape. The neck has a well defined "V" profile, the nut width is 1 13/16" and the scale length is 24 3/4". The tuners are 1950s/60s replacements, they are nothing special but they get the job done. Comes with a later period chip board case. Ships to US address only, no international shipping offered. NYS residents add 8% sales tax. Thanks for your interest.