Stradivari's labels and the dating of his instruments

Filed under Famous instruments & value · Stradivarius Violins editorial team

Antonius Stradivarius of Cremona placed printed paper labels inside his instruments bearing his name, city, the year of manufacture, and often his distinctive "AS" monogram. As he advanced in age, he sometimes amended the printed date by hand, leaving a handwritten correction alongside the original text. These labels serve as a primary reference point for dating a Stradivari instrument and situating it within the arc of his long career, which spanned decades of production in seventeenth and eighteenth-century Italy.

The authenticity and reliability of Stradivari labels, however, are far more complicated than the labels themselves suggest. His instruments are among the most imitated in the history of music, and counterfeit or inferior violins bearing forged Stradivari labels have circulated for centuries. A label reading "Antonius Stradivarius Cremonensis Faciebat" is no guarantee of genuine manufacture; it is merely a starting point for investigation.

Genuine attribution therefore demands that experts look beyond the label alone. Specialists cross-reference the label's date with the instrument's physical construction, the character and condition of its varnish, and increasingly, scientific analysis such as dendrochronology—the study of growth rings in the wood—to establish authenticity. The label remains a vital clue, but only when considered alongside rigorous examination of craftsmanship and materials can a Stradivari be reliably distinguished from the countless imitations bearing his name.

Sources: Tarisio — Cozio Archive of stringed instruments; Library of Congress — Stradivari instruments / Whittall Collection; The Metropolitan Museum of Art — musical instruments collection. Educational information only — not financial, investment, or appraisal advice. See our sources & fact-check policy.

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