Here's a Mystery Guitar

[Rob MacKillop]

I found this on eBay a few months back...




...and immediately thought of the Francesco Molino (1768 - 1847) archtop classical:






Clearly it is not one of those. So what evidence does my guitar give us? The head looks like it was made by Herman Hauser I - which if true would increase its value several fold. The neck is substantial, and again not unlike Hauser's.

The Brazilian rosewood is first-class, with the same veneered up the neck and back of the headstock. The soundboard is of high quality. This is not a cheap knock-off guitar.

It looks as if there was at one stage a pickup mounted between the f holes:



Here is the heel which seems similar to that on my 1840s Roudhloff Brothers' guitar:



There are a few holes in the base of the guitar, indicating a tailpiece:



Best shot I could get of internal barring:



And then there's the elephant in the room, that incredible bridge!



To sum up, there are some 19th-century features, some early 20th century, some evidence of a pickup of sorts. Is it possible it was used by a plectrum player with gypsy-style leanings? It's hard to tell if the marks below the first string were made by nails or a plectrum, or both. See treble f-hole image above - what look like nail markings appear all over the top, not just there. It might originally have had a tailpiece, and if so the ridiculous bridge might have been added later.

The sound is warm and mellow, not particularly loud, suits my nail-less classical technique as well as plectrum style. The tuners are stiff and creaky. It cost me £800, which might turn out to be a bargain...if not then I am happy I did not pay too much and still think I got a bargain. And I do like a mystery.

Any comments and/or suggestions welcome.

[Gitterbug]

I believe there's always been individual luthiers whose names have sunk into oblivion, both pro and their students/disciples/followers/admirers. Several per every Hauser-class name. Many with an occasional guitar as a sideline. I don't claim to know anything about the era in question, but the build suggests a pro luthier. The angled lengthwise half-round braces/ribs are interesting. I suppose they reduce the risk of the top cracking but also dampen the volume to an extent. Don't hesitate to put me right if I'm all in the woods.

If I were a luthier, I would at least experiment with a two-ply laminated top, with the bottom ply angled just enough to prevent cracking.

[Rob MacKillop]

Oh, I’m no luthier myself - it’s a dark art, carried out by shadowy figures but this guitar has many hallmarks of good lutherie (sp?).

I do think there is more than one pair of hands behind it, maybe of different eras.

Was the tailpiece original or interim? Is the lower bridge block covering up something, or giving extra strength due to damage? There are quite a few questions to answer. Meanwhile, it sounds and plays nicely.

[Woody Sound]

Whatever it is, it's awesome. Are you now the owner?

[Rob MacKillop]

Yes, Woody. I bought it on eBay for £800. It was at a fixed price of £1100, but I offered £800, and the seller accepted.

It’s certainly an unusual instrument, with a story to tell.

[dws0821]

I sent Gemini the photo, this is the reply below. I’ve no idea if right or not, but nice story…

This "mystery" guitar is a rare **Tauscher & Co.** (often labeled with the brand name **TACO**), handmade in **Markneukirchen, Germany**, likely between the **1930s and 1950s**.
### **Identifying Characteristics**
* **Unique Soundhole Configuration**: It features a small round central soundhole combined with two elegant, thin f-holes on the bouts.
* **Signature "Shield" Bridge**: The most distinctive feature is the large, black (ebony) shield-shaped bridge plate. It is a pin-style bridge decorated with a central **mother-of-pearl triangle** and a pattern of pearl dots.
* **Headstock**: A traditional **slotted headstock**, typical of early German and parlor-style guitars of that era.
* **Fingerboard**: It has distinctive **kite-shaped** or **diamond** mother-of-pearl inlays.
### **Historical Context**


The luthier, **Arno Tauscher**, was part of the famous Markneukirchen violin and guitar-making tradition. These "TACO" guitars are highly regarded by collectors of European vintage instruments for their "German carve" aesthetics and unique tonal profile, which is often described as a mix between a dry, punchy gypsy-jazz sound and a warm archtop resonance.

[Rob MacKillop]

Wow, thanks for that! Right or wrong, it is a nice story, and might have some veracity to it. I did get a ‘gypsy’ vibe from it, but there is so much of a classical guitar vibe as well. We know that Maccaferri designed a nylon-string version of his guitars, but with a Grande Bouche.

With the pin bridge, I’m wondering if it was designed for steel strings - but 19th-century classical guitars also had pin bridges for gut strings.

Well, your research with Gemini has given me something to follow up. Many thanks!

[Rob MacKillop]

PS There’s an old thread here on Taco guitars (along with the expected jokes) here: Tauscher & Co , Taco guitars but it is not the guitar I have, or as described by Gemini.

[Rob MacKillop]

From ChatGPT:

? Most likely identification (refined)

Your guitar fits extremely closely with:
Markneukirchen / Schönbach “trade” workshop guitars (circa 1925–1940)

This region (now split between Germany and the Czech Republic) produced huge numbers of unbranded instrumentsthat were exported worldwide.

---

? Why this specific workshop tradition fits your guitar

1. Hybrid soundhole design (big clue)

• Your guitar has both f-holes AND a round soundhole
• That’s not standard for American makers, but it does appear on some German designs
• For example, the Arnold Hoyer Herr im Frack uses this same hybrid concept

? This tells us you’re in the German design lineage, not American

---

2. Slotted headstock + steel strings

• Very typical of pre-war Central European builds
• Transitional design: classical construction adapted to steel strings
• Strongly associated with Schönbach cottage-industry production

---

3. Zero fret + simple fingerboard

• A signature European feature, especially German/Czech instruments
• Rare on American guitars of the same era

---

4. Tailpiece shape & decoration

• That triangular + dotted celluloid tailpiece is a huge clue
• These decorative, slightly eccentric tailpieces show up repeatedly on:
  
  • Export guitars
  • Small-batch workshop instruments
  
  
• They were often bought from parts suppliers, not made by a single luthier

---

5. Construction style

From your close-ups:

• Likely pressed or lightly carved spruce top
• Relatively thin finish
• Slightly crude but charming workmanship

That matches trade instruments rather than master-built luthier guitars

---

? Narrowing the workshop further

Within that region, your guitar most likely comes from:
Schönbach (now Luby, Czech Republic) export workshops

OR
Markneukirchen, Saxony, Germany

These two towns functioned as a single instrument-making ecosystem.

• Thousands of small workshops
• Parts made separately (necks, bodies, hardware)
• Assembled and sold under:
  
  • Shop labels
  • Distributor brands
  • Or no label at all (like yours)

? This is why exact attribution is difficult—even experts often stop at “Markneukirchen/Schönbach trade guitar”

---

? Important context (this explains the mystery)

In that region:

• One shop made necks
• Another carved tops
• Another supplied tailpieces
• Final seller added a label (or didn’t)

So your guitar is less like:

• “a Gibson model X”

…and more like:

• “a product of an instrument-making network”

---

? Closest “family resemblance” makers

If you had to associate it with known names, it sits closest to early work from:

• Hofner (early/pre-war style lineage)
• Framus (later continuation of the same tradition)
• Otwin or Klira (similar workshop outputs)

…but yours is likely earlier and unbranded

---

? Best estimate

• Origin: Markneukirchen / Schönbach region
• Date: ~1925–1940 (pre-WWII most likely)
• Type: Export “trade” archtop/parlor hybrid

---

? Final honest assessment

You’re looking at:

A pre-war Central European workshop guitar, not tied to a single named luthier—but absolutely authentic to a very specific and historically important manufacturing tradition.

That may sound less glamorous than a famous brand—but among collectors, these are valued for:

• quirky design (like your hybrid soundholes)
• historical context
• and surprisingly good tone

[Rob MacKillop]

I’ve never used Ai before, so am not used to evaluating their statements, but I think along with Gemini’s description we seem to be in the right general area. My guitar, though, does not have a zero fret, and I feel ChatGPT might have jumped to the assumption that a pin bridge = steel strings.

Interesting.

[Rob MacKillop]

Here's a close guitar from a later date:



Definitely steel strings there. Mine seems from an earlier era, pre WWII. Good to see a tradition for context.