Stamped to the frame for one of the top names in the field, G. Jeffries Maker, a 15-button cased concertina had some to-be-expected patches to the gilt-decorated bellows and scuffs to the case but left the £200-300 estimate behind to sell at £3200.
The full-size violin and bows also shown below went further above estimate.
To the one-piece back of the instrument was a paper label for John Betts of London and the date 1861 to the interior, and one of the three bows was a silver-mounted example stamped E. Sartory A Paris.
Violin with John Betts label and bows including one stamped E. Sartory – £8400.
John Betts II (1810-76) was part of the family business at the Royal Exchange established by his uncle, the more famous John Betts I, but is a respected name.
Eugène Sartory (1871-1946) is regarded as one of the best, if not the best, makers of bows in the 20th century.
Violin and bow makers are, of course, notoriously casual about using names more famous than their own and the violin, in a case catalogued as a/f, had suffered considerable wear and tear and had a hairline crack while the bow was missing a roundel.
Nevertheless, bidders at the October 31-November 1 sale were confident that there was real quality to the lot and, against a £200-300 estimate, it sold at £8400.
