Prosper Colas
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François "Prosper" Colas (1842–1919) was a French
archetier A bow maker is a person who builds, repairs, and restores antique or modern Bow (music), bows for bowed string instruments. These include violins, violas, cellos, double basses, viola d'amore, viola da gamba, etc. The French word for bowmaker (b ...
/
bow maker A bow maker is a person who builds, repairs, and restores antique or modern Bow (music), bows for bowed string instruments. These include violins, violas, cellos, double basses, viola d'amore, viola da gamba, etc. The French word for bowmaker (b ...
based in
Mirecourt Mirecourt () is a Communes of France, commune in the Vosges (French department), Vosges Departments of France, department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Mirecourt is known for lace-making and the manufacture of musical instruments, particula ...
, France. Born in
Goincourt Goincourt () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. See also * Communes of the Oise department The following is a list of the 680 Communes of France, communes of the Oise Departments of France, department of France. The co ...
(Meurthe et Moselle) in 1842, he apprenticed locally, and was influenced by the late
Dominique Peccatte Dominique Peccatte (15 July 1810 – 13 January 1874) was a French luthier and above all a renowned bow maker. He was apprenticed in Mirecourt and later worked with Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume. He is notable for adapting the "hatchet-shaped" typ ...
school (in his early period). Prosper Colas's work is similar to that of François Bazin, Charles Claude Husson, and Pierre Cuniot. Around 1871, he came to Paris where he likely met
Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume Jean-Baptiste Vuillaume (; 7 October 1798 – 19 March 1875) was a French luthier, businessman, inventor and winner of many awards. He was one of the finest French luthiers of the 19th century and a key figure in the world of violin making. ...
and worked for him. The first bows bearing his brand can be dated to this period and reflect Vuillaume's influence (with the "Vuillaume style frogs"). Prosper Colas worked for a varied number of makers and produced a huge quantity of bows. His best production was from the turn of the century (early 20th century). His lower tier production is stamped “P.C.”. One can also find instruments bearing Prosper Colas's label as he sold mail order instruments made by the primary
Mirecourt Mirecourt () is a Communes of France, commune in the Vosges (French department), Vosges Departments of France, department in Grand Est in northeastern France. Mirecourt is known for lace-making and the manufacture of musical instruments, particula ...
workshops of his time:
Jérôme Thibouville-Lamy Jérôme Thibouville-Lamy & Cie, abbreviated as "J.T.L.", was a French musical instrument making company, formed in the mid 19th century from the merger of pre-existing makers. It was based in Mirecourt, France, and was active producing large nu ...
and
Marc Laberte Marc André Joseph Laberte (29 May 1880 – 29 March 1963) son of Pierre Alexis Auguste Laberte, was trained as a luthier as well as a bow maker. As early as 1911, he began to play an active role in the Laberte-Humbert Frères company. The Laber ...
. "Prosper Colas died in 1919, at which point his business was taken over by Ferret-Marcotte".Filimonov Fine Violins


References

* * * * Dictionnaire Universel del Luthiers - Rene Vannes 1951,1972, 1985 (vol.3) {{DEFAULTSORT:Cuniot-Hury, Eugene 1842 births 1919 deaths Bow makers 19th-century French artisans Luthiers from Mirecourt