Santo Serafin

Born in 1699 in Widene, a town northeast of Venice.

At the same time in Widene, Mateo Goffriler's (1659-1742) son Francesco Goffriler (1692-1740) was also producing works, and it is possible that he was influenced by them in some way.

Seraphin moved to Venice in 1717, where he met Matteo Goffriller and his pupils Domenico Montagnana (1687-1750) and Francesco Gobetti (1675-1723) in the workshop of Matteo Sellas (1599-1654), a lute maker who had moved from Fussen and was a leading instrument dealer in Venice.

During this time, he also encountered other accomplished string instrument makers, such as Pietro Guarneri (1695-1762), who had moved from Cremona, and Carlo Tononi (1675-1730), who had moved from Bologna, and it is believed that he honed his skills while taking on work from them.

He began working independently around 1725. From the beginning, his craftsmanship was highly refined, and he produced many Amati and Steiner-type medium- to high-arch violins with attractive features such as symmetrical, rounded outlines, harmonious arching, F-holes, and scrolls that extended all the way to the top, all meticulously crafted using high-quality wood and coated with high-quality varnish.

Unfortunately, the cellos that made the Venetian School famous are rare.

He continued to produce works until around 1758, together with his nephew Georgio Serafin (1726-1755) and his pupil Anselmo Bellosio (1743-1793).

He died in 1776 at the age of 77.

Quote《The Brompton's Book of Violin and Bow Makers》《les violins》