James Findlay

FINDLAY, James Born 1815, died 1896 Padanaram, Forfarshire, Scotland UK. Worked as a weaver and also known as a fiddle player. Active maker from c.1829; credited with 500 instruments. Employed several assistants, including J. Marnie, A. MacNicol, J. Glenday, and William Findlay, presumably related. Slightly coarse work on a vaguely Neapolitan model. Soundholes have short wings and small lower circles. Narrow edges are set with broad purfling. Neatly carved head with broad chin. Plain materials with rather intransparent red-brown varnish. James Findlay / Maker / Padanaram 18.. [Rattray]

He was born at a farm near Brechin, in Forfarshire. He made about five hundred instruments, mostly violins on the Guarneri model. I have seen only three of his violins, which were on the Stradivari model, one being well-made, of good wood, with a large tone. He made several copies of a very old violin in the possession of Mr. J. Michie, Brechin, and these are said to be his best, both in workmanship and tone. The said old fiddle is on an original model, something between the models of Strad and Joseph, and has a sweet and mellow tone. It is nearly black through oxidation, and is very correctly christened ” Black Meg,” as it is a fiddle with a character, and deserves a name. It was down here for inspection some two years ago, and both its nationality and parentage are still a puzzle to me. There is a characteristic quaintness about the work of Findlay, as may be inferred from the fact that he copied an unconventional instrument of the type of the old fiddle just named. His wood is mostly plain, and the varnish usually a spirit one. He had two or three labels ; the one in the instruments examined by me ran : —

JAMES FINDLAY, PADANARAM, 1870

This was handwritten ; others are printed.

A maker in Padanaram, Forfarshire. He died 1896.

Ein schottischer Weber, der etwa 500 Geigen gemacht hat. Viele davon
sind Copien nach einer Jos. Guarneri-Geige, die ein Landsmann von ihm besass,
einige gehen in den Umrissen auf ein Stradivari-Modell zurück, und andere sind
Nachahmungen einer »Black Meg« genannten alten Geige, die sich im Besitze
eines Tanzmeisters in Farfar befand. Die F-Löcher sind originell in der Form,
die Einlage ziemlich breit, die Schnecken oft aus Birnbaumholz. Er verwendete
einen dünnen Spirituslack von gelbbrauner Farbe, der sehr nachgedunkelt hat. In der Wahl des Holzes war er sorglos und verarbeitete selbst alte Eisenbahnschwellen,
wenn er nichts Anderes zur Hand hatte. Die Weberei betrieb er bis an sein Ende; ausserdem war er ein vorzüglicher Geiger.