Stolen during World War II, a violin by the famous master Antonio Stradivari has been found in Tokyo, as reported The New York Times (NYT).
The Mendelssohn instrument was made in 1709 and given to the Mendelssohn-Bonke family for safekeeping. However, it disappeared during the war and the family tried unsuccessfully to find it.
Expert Carla Shapro identified the violin. She was looking at photographs from an exhibition of Stradivarius instruments held in Japan in 2018. There, the violin was exhibited under the name Stella, and it was noted that it was made in 1707.
The specialist compared the photo with the original and determined from the wood patterns that it was a Mendelssohn. The instrument was sold at auction in New York in 2000, and was valued at $1.5 million.
Earlier it was reported that a Stradivarius violin was sold at auction in New York for $11.25 million. It is made of maple and has the creator’s signature in Latin.
