Amati > Makers Archive > William Charles RETFORD

William Charles RETFORD

Auction price history

Highest auction price

£4,180

Type Details Sold Price
Violin Bow S/E 62 g. Sun 1st May 2005 £1,800
Cello Bow G/I 77 g. Thu 1st May 2003 £1,396
Cello Bow S/E 84 g. Sun 1st March 1998 £3,306
Viola Bow S/E 72 g. Sat 1st March 1997 £3,220
Violin Bow S/E 62 g. Thu 1st November 1990 £4,180
Biographies

John Dilworth

RETFORD, William Charles Born 1875 New Milton, Hampshire, died 1970 London UK. Distinguished bow maker. Trained at W. E. Hill & Sons in London from 1892 under Arthur Hill and Sydney Yeoman. Head of the bow making department from 1907. Retired 1956 but remained active until 1968. Developed the ‘Hill bow’, an amalgam of the French and English traditions. Tools and equipment from his workshop are preserved at the Faculty of Music in Oxford. Author of Bows and Bowmaking (London, 1964). Most of his bows carry the Hill brand. Private work from 1956 is branded: W. C. RETFORD. Made one violin, labelled: Made by William C. Retford / Bowmaker

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