Trombone by Johann Paul Franck, Hildburghausen, Thuringia, 1744 NMM 4896. Tenor trombone by Johann Paul Franck, Hildburghausen, Thuringia (Germany), 1744. Engraved on bell garland: * MACHT * IOHANN * PAULL * FRANCK * IN * HILDBURG * HAUSSEN * ANNO * 1744.  Ex coll.:  Ernst Buser, Basel, Switzerland. Purchase funds gift of Mr. and Mrs. Clifford E. Graese, Orlando, Florida, 1990. Hildburghausen is a small town located about sixty miles north of Nürnberg, near Coburg. According to local church records, Johann Paul Joseph Franck (d. 1747) was a maker of hunting horns, trombones, and a brass founder for the local court of Duke Ernst Friedrich II (1724-1745). The NMM's finely engraved and embossed brass trombone, with silver-plated fittings, was built just three years before Franck's death. Only two other instruments by this talented Thuringian maker are known to survive:  two hunting horns, the first dated 1722, preserved at the Germanisches Nationalmuseum (W3014), Nürnberg; and the second, dated 1746, at the Stadtmuseum Hildburghausen. Views of the Bell Garland Note: Click on images below to see larger images. Franck's signature is stamped around the inner circumference of the silver-plated bell garland. In this image, the date, 1744, and the words, MACHT * IOHANN (made by Johann . . .), can be seen. Although the brass bell was joined in the traditional way, using tab seams, both the exterior and interior of the bell clearly show concentric lines that result from spinning the bell during the instrument's construction. A garland of swags is engraved below the maker's signature. Here, the maker's middle and last name, PAULL * FRANCK, are visible. Text visible in this image:  FRANCK * IN * HILDBURG * HAUSSEN * .  The silver rim wire is embossed in a delicate and detailed floral pattern. Text visible in this image:  HAUSSEN * ANNO * 1744 The text, * ANNO * 1744, completes the maker's signature and identifies the year in which the trombone was completed. Bell Stays Note: Click on images below to see larger images. The silver-plated saddle surrounds the entire circumference of the bell pipe. The hinge, hinge-pin, ferrules, and bell stays are also silver-plated. On the neck-pipe side, the bell stay is attached to an engraved silver ferrule that is flanked by two similarly engraved ferrules. The flat, silver-plated bell stays are embellished on both sides with a central floral engraving. Slide Stays and Ferrule The brass slide stays are made from embossed, machine-made garnishes featuring delicate floral and geometric motifs. The brass slide ferrules feature engraved rings. Literature:  Stewart Carter, "Early Trombones in America's Shrine to Music Museum," Historic Brass Society Journal 10 (1998), pp. 96-98, 108-109. Return to Checklist of Trombones Made Before 1800 National Music Museum The University of South Dakota 414 East Clark Street Vermillion, SD 57069 ©National Music Museum, 2005 Most recent update: October 19, 2007 You are the 2,933rd visitor to this page since April 4, 2005 The University of South Dakota Return to Top of Page