Top 15 Most Expensive Violins In The World

Can you imagine the price of the world’s most expensive Violin?

If you’re ready with the numbers, Let us tell you, this sweet sounding instrument can cost up to millions of dollars.

Top quality woodwork, premium frames, high-tension strings and excellent artisanship are the reasons behind their surging costs.

And the sad part is, we can’t even buy them. All of these valuable violins are of limited editions and already belong to some of the richest persons.

So, let’s quickly dive into the List of Top 15 Most Expensive Violins…

Here we go…

15. Ex-Ries Stradivari – $1.5 Million

Antonio Stradivarius, who is known as the grandmaster of Violins, crafted Ex-Ries Stradivari in 1693. He is known for constructing some of the world’s top-class violins, guitars and pianos.

The violin is very beautiful with one-piece back, fine grain top and reddish brown colours.

It has been played by notable violinists Catherine Smith and Franz Riles. This violin is currently granted to famous Hungarian violinist Joszef Lendvay.

14. The Titanic Violin – $2 Million

This is known to be a quite famous violin as it was played on the world-known ship, Titanic. The Wallace Hartley’s band played this violin to calm the passengers when the ship was about to sink.

It was lost underwater when the Titanic sank and later found by the surviving crews after 10 days.

It was auctioned in 2013 for nearly $2 Million. The director of the auction said, “I can honestly say I don’t think any other article has made people show as much emotion as this one.”

This violin became one of the most valuable artifact from the Titanic Auctions.

13. The Lady Tennant Stradivarius – $3 Million

The Lady Tennant Violin was developed by Antonio Stradivari in 1699.

The famous violinist, Charles Philippe Lafont, originally owned the violin. After his death, it was gifted to the wife of Charles Clow Tennant and hence its name changed to Lady Tennant Violin.

This is known to be the first creation of the Stradivari in his golden period.

The violin has been played by many violinists such as Ulf Hoelscher, Xiang Gao, Yang Liu and Yossif Anov to name a few.

There is an interesting thing about this violin that it has an engraved lock plate on it’s back that has Lady Tennant’s name and address on it.

12. The Hammer Stradivarius – $3.5 Million

The Hammer is another expensive violin created by Antonio Stradivari in 1707. The violin was named after famous violinist Christian Hammer,  who was also known as the first owner of this violin.

In 1992, it was acquired by Japanese Oil Company and later passed on to the violinist Kyoko Takezawa.

In 2006, it was sold at Christie’s auction for a massive deal of $3.5 Million.

11. The Molitor Stradivarius – $4 Million

This violin is one of the world’s oldest instruments created by Antonio Stradivari in 1697. It has an unbelievable sweet tone and fine strings, which makes it unique.

The violin was named after Jean Joseph Molitor and later preserved by his family for nearly 80 years.

It has been played by Napolean Bonaparte, Juliette, Oliveira and Albert Stern.

Current owner of this violin is American violinist Anne Akiko Meyers, who purchased this violin in the Tarisio Auction.

10. IL Cannone Guarnerius – $5 Million

In 1743, Italian Antonio Guarneri constructed this violin.

The violin received it’s name from an early owner, Niccolo Paganini, because of it’s powerful strength and resonance.

The Cannone has multiple unique features that made it so expensive. It has a curved neck with fine set of strings and thicker soundbox.

The violin has been played by multiple violinists such as Paganini, Shlomo Mintz, Eugene Fodor and Regina Carter.

9. Dolphin Stradivarius – $6 Million

The Dolphin Stradivarius is one more creation of artistAntonio Stradivari, who crafted this violin in 1714.

The name of this violin derived from its striking appearance and back colour which resembled a dolphin. This violin is one of the finest creations of the Italian artisan, Stravidi.

George Hart, John Adams, Jascha Heifetz and David Laurie are some of the notable violinists who are known to get their hands on this instrument.

Currently, the Dolphin Stradivarius is owned by the Nippon Music Foundation.

8. Lord Wilton – $6 Million

The Lord Wilton Violin was made in 1742 by the famous artisan Guarneri del Gesu.

This violin was named after a musician, Seymour Egerton, 4^th Earl of Wilton.

The popular violinist Yehudi Menuhin owned and played this instrument. Later after the death of Yehudi, this was sold in $6 million to the collector David L. Fulton.

Lord Wilton violin is mostly known for it’s superb design, tremendous carrying power and mischievous sound.

7. La Pucelle Stradivari – $6 Million

Famous artisan Antonio Stradivari developed this finest and beautiful violin, La Pucelle Stradivari, in 1709.

This violin is counted in some of the finest creations of Stradivari. The unique design and constructing of La Pucelle distinguishes itself from other violins.

It was kept safe for 50 years with Huguette Clark, who received it from his mother. Later he sold the violin to the collector David L. Fulton.

As per the sources, La Pucelle has been preserved so well that it has no sign of cracks, no re-polishing, no retouching and no worn corners. This purity of the instrument made it in the list of most expensive violins on the planet.

6. Mary Portman – $10 Million

This violin gets it’s name from the lady, Mary Isabel Portman, who was a daughter of a British man.

The Mary Portman has been played by the popular violinists Fritz Kreisler, Yi-Jia Susanne Hou and Adele Anthony.

Currently, the violin has been granted to Francisco Fullana.

In his statement to the Violin channel, Fullana said, “It is a huge honor to be granted the use of one of the string world’s true crown jewels … an instrument once owned and played by my idol Fritz Kreisler”.

All those who have played this beautiful violin has praised it for it’s magnificent strings, design and tone.

5. Carrodus Guarneri – $10 Million

This violin is another creation of Guarneri del Gesu in 1743.

John Carrodus once owned this violin and hence its name is Carrodus. This violin also passed through the hands of Niccolo Paganini and Ossy Renardy.

At present, the owner of this violin is Richard Tognetti, the director of Australian Chamber Orchestra.

The amazing craft, strings and colour palate makes this one of the most valuable violins in the world.

This violin was played first time in 50 years by the Australian Chamber Orchestra in the year 2007.

4. Ex-Kochanski Guarneri – $11 Million

Famous violinist Aaron Rosand, sold the Ex-Kochanski Guarneri violin for nearly $11 million.

This violin was crafted by Guarneri del Gesu in 1741 and named after it’s early owner Paul Kochanski. Later this violin was bought by Aaron Rosand, who kept it for almost 50 years.

It has a reddish brown texture which makes it more unique and rare.

3. Lady Blunt Violin – $15.9 Million

This violin has been named after it’s first owner, Lady Anne Blunt, daughter of Ada Lovelace.

It has been crafted by Antonio Stradivari, in 1716 and has been preserved in a top-notch quality.  Lady Blunt Violin was auctioned in 2011 to raise money for disaster relief and charity in Japan.

This violin has been in interests of collectors from around the globe. It has been through the hands of Jean Baptiste, Lady Anne Blunt, W.E hills and sons, and then some collectors.

All of the events associated with the Lady Blunt Violin has soars it’s price to millions of dollars.

2. Vieuxtemps Guarneri Violin – $16 Million

Vieuxtemps Guarneri is the name that comes in news while discussing world’s most expensive violins. It is also one of the most luxurious instruments in existence.

This violin is as old as 280 years and was built in 1741 by the famous Italian instrument maker Giuseppe Guarneri. This instrument is even much older than the existence of United States of America.

This violin has been sold in a Chicago auction to a mammoth price of $16 million.

At present, the popular violinist Anne Akiko Meyers is taking care of this valuable instrument.

The Guarneri Violin has an exciting history. It has been named after the 19^th-century Belgian owner – Henri Vieuxtemps. He was so obsessed with this violin that he wanted to be buried with it.

It has been passed through the hands of Pinchas Zuckerman, Itzhak Perlman, Yehudi Menuhin, Ian Stoutzker and Sir Isaac Wolfson.

The famous violinist, Phillippe Quint, has performed on this violin a number of times and in a statement he said, “This violin has unbelievable power, not just in loudness but in terms of sound quality. It has a huge palate of colours that allows you to express a wider range of emotions.”

All this historical events associated with this violin, makes the Vieuxtemps Guarneri in the list of most valuable violins in the whole world.

1. Messiah Stradivarius – $20 Million

Wealthy Voice presents you the world’s rarest and most expensive violin – Messiah Stradivarius.

Antonio Stradivari crafted it in 1716, which makes it almost 300 years old violin.

The story behind the luxurious price of Messiah is exciting. The maker, Stradivari, developed this masterpiece in his golden years, and never tried to sold it. Only after his demise, the Messiah, left his shop after 21 years from the date of it’s existence.

Moreover, the Messiah has been played very less number of times, and the condition of the violin is relatively new. This much care of the violin, has boosted it’s price to $20 Million.

Before resting in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford University in 1939, several violinists tried their hands on this masterpiece. Popular violinists such as Joseph Joachim, Natham Milstein to name a few.

The history behind the Messiah Violin has made it the most expensive violin on the planet.

Disclaimer: The prices of the violins listed here are accurate when they were sold at the time of auctions. The current value of these violins may have increased or decreased as per different factors.

Summary

We hope you loved our list of most valuable violins in existence. Most of these are very difficult to get hands on.

Here’s a quick recap of the Top 15 Most Expensive Violins in the World:

1. Messiah Stradivarius – $20 Million
2. Vieuxtemps Guarneri Violin – $16 Million
3. Lady Blunt Violin – $15.9 Million
4. Ex-Kochanski Guarneri – $11 Million
5. Carrodus Guarneri – $10 Million
6. Mary Portman – $10 Million
7. La Pucelle Stradivari – $6 Million
8. Lord Wilton – $6 Million
9. Dolphin Stradivarius – $6 Million
10. IL Cannone Guarnerius – $5 Million
11. The Molitor Stradivarius – $4 Million
12. The Hammer Stradivarius – $3.5 Million
13. The Lady Tennant Stradivarius – $3 Million
14. The Titanic Violin – $2 Million
15. Ex-Ries Stradivari – $1.5 Million

Let’s take a closer look to a famous question:

Why is a Stradivarius Violin Is So Expensive?

After reading the above article, you should now know that the famous Italian Antonio Stradivari had developed some of the most expensive violins.

But the real question arises, why his violins are so valuable and expensive?

Let’s decode it…

Stradivarius violins are best known for their superior sound, the tone when compared to other violins. The woods used in the strads have some chemical composition which was found only in the 17^th and 18^th centuries.

Even scientists are trying to uncover the secrets of Stradivarius violins.

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• List of World’s Most Expensive Woods
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