This Ajax fretless banjo was made in England around 1890 by William Temlett. The head is 12 inches in diameter, and if you use the 12th pearl dot on the side of the neck as a guide, the string scale is a bit over 28 inches. The nut is 1 3/16" wide at the nut. This banjo has 24 plated brass hook & nut brackets, with delightful matching square nuts! The spun-over shell has a matching rolled lip at both top and bottom with the upper edge serving as a tone ring. The friction pegs are bone, as is the tailpiece.  We don't know how old the skin head is, but it was very well-fitted and shows no signs of wear or thin spots. Includes a padded gig bag.

This banjo was made by William Temlett, an inventor, publisher, and builder who worked in England in the last half of the 19th century. He made a variety of styles and was well known in the 1880s for his six and seven string instruments, which were popular in England at the time. Along with building banjos, Temlett was the publisher of The Banjo, Mandolin and Guitar News, an early magazine devoted to fretted stringed instruments. Temlett died in 1900 of a stroke.

Things to note: We can't tell what kind of wood the neck is made of, but the fingerboard is real ebony (the dots are pearl, the stars are apparently nickel, as is the heel cap).  It's hard to tune steel strings with friction pegs, and this neck was obviously intended for gut strings, but the neck is fairly straight with the steel strings on it tuned low. And you gotta love the cast dowel stick wedge with "W T" monogram!  Those who know and love early banjos will appreciate the quality of the metal work and the plating. Compared to S. S. Stewart and other US makers of the period, Temlett's production was minuscule and it's obvious his small crew took pride in their work.  

We're selling this banjo to settle an estate, and Gryphon has done no repairs or set-up as we were instructed to sell the instrument as we got it.

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