NMM 5221.  Electric bass guitar by Epiphone, Kalamazoo, Michigan, 1967. Rivoli EB232.  Serial number 865243. James S. Patterson Estate, Albuquerque, New Mexico, 1991. Epiphone began with the founding of a musical instrument-making workshop in New York by Anastasios Stathopoulo, a Greek immigrant. Following his death in 1915, the family continued to expand the business. In 1923, the business was incorporated as Epiphone, named for Epiminondas "Epi" Anastasios Stathopoulo, Anastasios’ son and leader of the company. The name Epiphone translates as "Epi’s sound." The family sold the firm to the C. G. Conn Company in Elkhart in 1953. The Rivoli, with a thin-line, semi-hollow body, was introduced in 1959, two years after Epiphone was bought by Chicago Musical Instrument Company (CMI), also the owner of Gibson. The Rivoli went in and out of production during the next decade until it was permanently discontinued in 1970. The Rivoli was Epiphone’s most expensive electric bass in 1968, offered at $425. Front, Side, and Back Views Front and Back Views of the Body Click on pickup or bridge for larger images of those features   Fretboard and Peghead Neck Heel Soundhole, Bridge, and Controls Click on bridge for a larger view of bridge Lower End of Guitar Return to Epiphone Guitar Checklist National Music Museum The University of South Dakota 414 East Clark Street Vermillion, SD 57069 ©National Music Museum, 2005 Most recent update: October 23, 2007 You are the 7,001st visitor to this page sinceAugust 17, 2005 The University of South Dakota Return to Top of Page