Anonymous French harpsichord (17th cent.), Collection Beurmann
Anonymous French harpsichord (17th cent.), Collection Beurmann
The harpsichord belongs to the Andreas and Heikedine Beurmann Collection in the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe, Hamburg. It is not dated. Judging from details, particularly the painting, a relatively early date of construction, c. 1630, can be assumed. In this case, this would be the oldest French harpsichord still extant.
The keyboard in particular, with its two manuals, appears French in style. The lower keys are covered with finely rounded off, reddish-black horn; the upper keys are in walrus ivory, obtained from the then French colonial possession of Newfoundland. As sometimes found in seventeenth-century France, the construction of the instrument resembles that of instruments from the southern Netherlands, in particular those built by the Ruckers family.
