Harpsichord
Burkat Shudi (1702 - 1773)
Category
Musical instruments, devices and recordings
Date
1761
Materials
boxwood, mahogany, satinwood, burr walnut, ivory and ebony
Measurements
931 mm (Width) x 271 mm (Depth); 2316 mm (Length)
Place of origin
London
Order this imageCollection
Fenton House, London
NT 1448907
Summary
Harpsichord, by Burkat Shudi (1702-73), England, 1761. A single-manual harpsichord inscribed on the fascia batten Burkat Shudi No.423 Fecit Londini 1761. The case veneered with mahogany and burr elm, inlaid with plain boxwood lines and resting on an adapted antique, thought probably not original, mahogany stand that is not original to the instrument. Furnished with one lid prop-stick and its original detachable ‘fallboard’. Keyboard compass FF (less FF#) – f3, disposition 2x8' and 1x4' with buff (‘harp’) stop and pedal-operated machine stop. Major George Henry Benton Fletcher (1866-1944) lent this instrument for a performance of Bach's St Matthew Passion at Westminster Abbey in 1934, a few years after he acquired the harpsichord from the musician Fanny Davies (1861-1934).
Provenance
Harpsichord by Burkat Shudi (1702-73), 1761. Purchased by Major George Henry Benton Fletcher (1866-1944) for £66 on 20 Oct 1932 through the Puttick & Simpson auction house from Fanny Davies (1861-1934). Described in the Old Devonshire House catalogue 1938. Transferred to the National Trust in February 1938.
Marks and inscriptions
BURKAT SHUDI No. 423 FECIT LONDINI 1761
Makers and roles
Burkat Shudi (1702 - 1773) , musical instrument maker