A Styrian violin maker built the world’s rarest precious metal and hundreds of precious stones into the world’s most valuable new violin. It will be presented in Liechtenstein at the beginning of 2023 and should raise several million.
Quiet Cremona is the violin capital of the world. The legendary Antonius Stradivari once had his studio here. The instruments that originated there are still unbeaten sound-wise. And highly coveted: if you want to own a Stradivarius, you have to pay a proud million dollar amount at auction.
Violin maker was born in Styria
But Cremona is not only home to the most valuable violins of the past. The most valuable new violin in the world is currently being built there – by a violin maker from Styria. “After several years of planning and work, the final touches have been made,” says Edgar Russ, who has lived and worked in Cremona since 1984. The instrument will be presented in early 2023. There are already interested parties and the sale price would be several million.
But what makes this violin so valuable? To answer this question, Russ has to start with his school days in Leibnitz. “My former classmate Karl Großschädl and his friend Kurt Assam came up with the idea of building the instrument,” he explains. The two trade in osmium, one of the most expensive precious metals in the world. “Osmium is 1000 times rarer than gold – and 40 times more expensive,” Assam and Großschädl explain to the “Krone”.
Osmium is very popular as an investment
Over a glass of wine in the summer of 2020, they came up with the idea that Edgar Russ could use osmium in a violin. “Osmium is well known in the jewelery industry and as an investment. We wanted to do something new and amazing with it,” they say. And Russ was immediately interested: “I specialized in marquetry when I was in violin making school and saw the project as a challenge.”
And Edgar Russ likes challenges: he once built the most expensive new violin in the world for the sultan of Oman Qabus bin Said, who passed away in 2020: “It is decorated with the most precious stones, and its existence was secret until the sultan’s death that I was not allowed to speak. Today the instrument is on display at the Muskat Opera.”
Material as a challenge
However, working with osmium was a new challenge: “The instrument should not only look good, it should also sound good. That alone took me a good year,” he says. He built about 700 osmium parts in gold and another 600 precious stones such as rubies, sapphires and diamonds into the instrument. “The basic body is made of wood, every part is processed by hand.”
Several thousand hours of work have gone into the osmium violin, which will be presented under the English title “The OS Violin” during the official opening of the Castle Casino in Vaduz, Liechtenstein. “The instrument will be on display there for the first time, and affluent customers, especially from the Arab and Asian regions, will also be there,” Assam and Großschädl explain.
Selling the instrument will probably not be difficult – despite the high price. “There are already initial questions and potential buyers,” they reveal. Depending on who gets the offer, they expect a purchase price of “several million euros”. And Russ hopes the violin is “played with love.”
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
