13 course lute after J.C. Hoffmann with triple pegbox by Jauck

J.C. Hoffmann (1683-1750) of Leipzig was the older of
the two sons of the famous luthier Martin Hoffmann. My
version of the Hoffmann lute is after an instrument now
in Brussels that was constructed in 1730. The body of
this lute is slightly deeper than other Baroque lute
models, yet the difference in depth is not very dramatic.

The triple pegbox is based on an instrument by
Andreas Jauck at Yale University (4565.60). The triple
pegbox seems to be a late development in the life of
the Baroque lute and offers a few advantages over the
earlier swan neck design with two pegboxes. First, the
triple box is more rigid in the mid-section and reduces
the twisting effect of torsion on the pegbox from the
string tension. Second, the spacings among the three
nuts distribute the distance between the fretted strings
at the main nut and the longest bass strings, resulting
in a more gradual transition between extremes.

Specifications

String length: 72, 88.5, and 110.0 cm
Body depth:  17.5 cm

• Soundboard in Italian or European spruce
  
• Edge binding in ebony
  
• 9 ribs in rosewood or figured maple
  
• Spacers in ebony or holly
  
• Bridge in European plum with ebony cap and ears
  
• Neckblock in Honduras mahogany
  
• Neck core in poplar with ebony veneer
  
• Pegbox in maple, dyed black
  
• Pegs in European plum, boxwood, or rosewood
  
• Nuts in bone, African blackwood, or lignum vitae
  
• Ebony fingerboard and points
  
• Strap buttons in holly or African blackwood
  
• Aquila Nylgut and copper overwound strings with
  nylon first and second courses
  

Price as above: $6,300.  

Instrument case not included in price.

Options at additional cost:

• Englemann spruce soundboard: deduct $75
  
• Bone pips in peg heads: $150
  
• Points and fingerboard panel in snakewood or
  amboyna burl with holly border: $100
  
• Gut strings by Gamut and Sofracob: $150