WS18-5
Bacon ( by
Vega)
F. F.
Professional No. 3 (Dragon)
5 String
S/N 67 1906 10 3/4 x 26 6 lbs.
Fully original
except the peghead overlay had disintegrated and was replaced with ebony. The
pearl inlay Dragon was saved.
Condition: Excellent.
Background: In the 1906 Bacon catalog, this was the top-of-the-line model
and sold for $100. The catalog illustration of the back view is somewhat
misleading by showing this model to have a heel carving of an angel’s face with
wings. Such banjos were made but were not the standard catalog instrument for
$100.
Features of this model: Tuners were gold-plated metal shafts with pearl
knobs. Inlays included a chubby Dragon filling the peghead and fancy engraved
designs on the back of the peghead and heel cap. Flat (cobra) hooks. “Internal
resonator” pot design. Multiple decorative veneers beneath the fingerboard and
the long backstrap. Heel carving that is similar to, but slightly more elaborate
than the Fairbanks Whyte-Laydie No. 7 models.
About this
instrument: Ex-Bollman Collection.
Click to enlarge: