Description
What makes this guitar special: A truly magnificent archtop, hand-made during Epiphone's golden age. This gorgeous Emperor boasts a massive 18 1/2" lower bout; carved Adirondak spruce top; maple back & sides with brilliant flame figuring. Split-block inlays, multiple body binding & classic sunburst finish round out the package. Superior tone & playability, this beautiful guitar embodies everything that is desired in a true American archtop, including a rich, powerful sound. Professionally set up by the experts at Cream City Music, so it plays & sounds amazing!
Cosmetic Condition: Marvelous condition for a guitar that's approaching its 80th birthday. For the most part very clean, but does show some signs of wear - there are a couple of back cracks that were glued & cleated; some minor surface cracks near the waist & tailpiece; various minor nicks & dings; surface scratches & light weather checking. Overall the guitar has a fabulous look to it & a very nice patina.
Neck: 7-piece flame maple & mahogany neck with 4-ply binding & black side-dots. Beautiful rosewood fingerboard with 3-ply inlay & mother of pearl split-block fret markers. 3-ply bound headstock with mother of pearl Epiphone, floral motif & triangle inlays. Original gold Epiphone tuners are in perfect working condition. 1 3/4" nut width; 25 1/2" scale length. Neck is straight & plays great up & down the fretboard.
Body: Solid adirondak spruce top with 9-ply binding & bound F-holes. The trapeze tailpiece is the proper style, but does not appear to be the original Frequensator common to this model. Compensated rosewood bridge on a floating rosewood base. The pickguard & brackets are missing. Solid maple back & sides also with 9-ply binding & some absolutely stunning flame figuring in the maple. Guitar weighs 5 lbs 13.6 oz. There is no pickup.
Case: Original hardshell case included. The case is a bit rough, with a broken handle & some separation in the top & bottom sections from the sides. For the most part it functions well, but could use a good restoration.