Gibson Style A "Snakehead" Model Carved Top Mandolin (1923), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, dark brown varnish finish, birch back and sides, spruce top; mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard, original black hard shell case.
A fine-playing and sounding Style A mandolin from late 1922 or very early 1923, esteemed as the "Loar era" at Gibson. These are generally considered the best-sounding roundhole "A" style mandolins ever made, and this one bears this out. This Style A is a fine example of Gibson's craftsmanship at the apex of the mandolin era, before the company's focus shifted to banjos and then guitars.
These "Snakehead" instruments are revered for their unmatched tone and projection and have all the most advanced features of the era including the adjustable truss rod, raised adjustable bridge and slim neck profile. The top is a brown stain finish like the earlier Style A, soon changed to a black finish on this model. These distinctive Loar-era A mandolins have recently become even more sought-after by discerning players.
Lloyd Loar's tenure as acoustic engineer at Gibson has become so mythical that sometimes separating fact from fiction is difficult. Certainly the mandolin family instruments made during the period of Loar's employment are the most perfectly realized in Gibson's history, and have become the template for most similar instruments since. The mandolins of the "Loar Era" show the influence of a master player on both design and execution, although other Gibson employees (especially Thaddeus McHugh and Lewis A. Williams) actually engineered many of the technical improvements of the early 1920's. Loar was primarily concerned with 'voicing' the instruments properly; the Master Model Style 5 line was his greatest contribution with their violin-style f-hole tops, but all Gibson mandolin family instruments were refined and improved at the same time.
Overall length is 25 7/8 in. (65.7 cm.), 10 in. (25.4 cm.) width, and 1 3/4 in. (4.4 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 14 in. (356 mm.). Width of nut is 1 1/16 in. (27 mm.).
Appears to have had some overspray/touchup to the top and sides; all hardware original except correct repro period bridge. One spot of celluloid deterioration in the center of the pickguard. A good-playing and sounding "snakehead". Very Good + Condition.
