Pierre Simon served his apprenticeship in Mirecourt before arriving in Paris around 1838 to work with his childhood friend Dominique Peccatte. Two years later he joined the Vuillaume workshop and as Bernard Millant states ‘there he produced many fine, well made bows’.
In Paris in the 1840’s he established his own shop and moved several times before in 1847 he took over Dominique Peccatte’s shop when Peccatte returned to Mirecourt. Despite leaving Vuillaume’s workshop he continued to supply Vuillaume with bows up until his death in 1881, this is one of his late bows made for Vuillaume. He also had a strong links with Joseph Henry when they worked together from 1848-1851 with a number of bows being collaborations between the two.
It is not stamped but it perhaps does have the vestige of a stamp that would make total sense. See below the E, this font and placement could correspond to the stamp Vuillaume used in the 1860’s, it could be the last E from the stamp J. B. Vuillaume.
These stamps were put on in the shop at the moment the bow was sold. In the dealer community they are known for being very faint and rather haphazardly put on, a customer is waiting after all!
Another Pierre Simon from the same era, note the broad chamfers
The bow weighs 58.2g and its point of balance is at 28cms. a fabulous area giving superb articulation whilst being far enough down the stick to give a rich lithe tone.
Simon was in his early sixties when he made this bow, having sold a number from this era it behaves exactly as you would expect. It is a masculine bow with a commanding presence, ideal for large scale concerto or symphonic repertoire.
In beautiful condition it is ready to go having been restored in our Spanish workshop to a first class condition.