Pernambuco with official proof of origin
Pernambuco (Paubrasilia echinata) is protected under CITES, and the rules are being tightened step by step. The wood for our bows comes from legally acquired stocks with complete documentation. Each bow now comes with a certificate confirming its legal, CITES-compliant origin.
- The certificate also applies to sales within the EU.
- It stays with the bow, even when the bow changes hands later on.
- For dealers: a solid answer when your customers ask where the wood comes from.
We are happy to answer any questions about the certificate. Talk to us.
Technical data
| Instrument | viola |
| Model | 69 |
| Stick | pernambuco |
| Size | 4/4 |
| Frog | Ebony |
| Species protection | CITES Appendix II |
| Item number | BO-V69-4_4 |
Features
- Model 69 for viola
- Stick of pernambuco
- Size 4/4
In practice
- Pernambuco (Paubrasilia echinata) is listed in CITES Appendix II. Since 5 March 2026 the tightened annotation from CoP20 applies: finished bows are exempt only for non-commercial movement.
- Travel, performance, teaching and repair remain free of permits as long as there is no change of ownership. On a sale within the EU, proof of legal acquisition is supplied with the bow.
- Shipping outside the EU requires a re-export certificate from the German Federal Agency for Nature Conservation. We arrange such shipments in advance.
- Viola bows usually weigh around 70 grams.
- For how a bow feels, the balance point matters more than absolute weight. The closer it sits to the tip, the more head-heavy the bow feels.
- Too soft and the stick bottoms out under pressure, making spiccato difficult; too stiff and the stick responds less to your bowing.
- The ferrule at the frog holds and spreads the hair; it is a structural part, not decoration. Through the mass of the metal parts the bow maker also sets the balance point.
- The mother-of-pearl eye in the middle of the frog, by contrast, is purely a matter of finish.
- Slacken after every session so the stick keeps its shape. Never overtighten, apply rosin sparingly and wipe the stick.
- Sideways warp, lost camber or hair falling out unevenly are reasons to have the bow looked at in the workshop.
Sound and physics
For a viola with a 40 cm body the bow measures around 720 mm without the button (the screw head at the frog), weighs 68 to 72 g when finished and carries around 170 hairs. In a pernambuco bow, typically around 50 g of that is the wood of the stick alone. The head of the viola bow is around 25 mm high and the frog around 23 mm.
Pernambuco (Paubrasilia echinata, Caesalpinia echinata in older literature) is the wood with which François Tourte established the form of the bow around 1790 that is still valid today. In this Brazilian wood Tourte found the combination a stick needs: light, strong and flexible.
Air-dried at 12 % moisture content, pernambuco has a density of 900 to 1,100 kg/m³ and a modulus of elasticity (a measure of stiffness) along the grain of 18,000 to 25,000 MPa; sound travels along its grain at around 4,000 to 5,300 m/s. A high speed of sound and low damping are what make its quality as bow wood, and bow makers select their wood by density, speed of sound and modulus of elasticity.
The stick is cut straight along the grain and then bent over heat towards the hair side. Hair tension and pressure meet most strongly at the head.
The Massaranduba models 62 with a round stick and 63 with an octagonal stick sit between 22 and 66 in this series. Up to model 73 the mounts and wire winding are nickel silver (an alloy of copper, nickel and zinc); from model 74 they are sterling silver 925. A lined slide means that the mother-of-pearl slide on the underside of the frog is framed in metal; the Parisian eye is a mother-of-pearl inlay in the frog, set in a brass ring. The frog is made of East Indian ebony (Diospyros ebenum); neither this ebony nor the mother-of-pearl on our bows appears on the species protection lists.
The stars on the stick show the quality grade of a pernambuco bow; besides the wood, details of the finish such as winding and button feed into this grading. Pernambuco bows are stamped on the frog and on the stick, Massaranduba bows on the frog only, and since 2025 every bow has also carried a laser-engraved serial number.
Our experience
The wood for our pernambuco bows is seasoned for 30 years and more before it becomes a bow. We watch a newly made, high-quality bow under tension after it is finished to see that it holds true. The best care for a pernambuco stick is to slacken it after playing: in our experience a stick breaks almost only where full tension, dry air and long periods of lying unused come together.
In our experience a model with a higher number brings a harder stick and more handwork.
Frequently asked questions
How much does a viola bow weigh?
For a viola with a 40 cm body a finished bow weighs 68 to 72 g.
How much pernambuco is in a viola bow?
Typically around 50 g of wood in the stick. This net figure is also the basis for the species protection pre-acquisition certificate.
Is Fernambuk the same as pernambuco?
Yes, Fernambuk is the spelling used in German bow making; the botanical name of the wood is Paubrasilia echinata.
May I take my pernambuco bow on a concert tour?
Yes, travelling for performances and repairs without a change of ownership remains free of permits after the CITES conference CoP20 as well. A sale to countries outside the EU requires a permit.
What is the difference between models 72 and 73?
The fittings are the same; model 73 additionally has a titanium screw with a copper nut. At 4,510 kg/m³ titanium weighs little more than half as much as steel at 7,800 to 8,000 kg/m³.
What does model 78 S have that the 78 does not?
A silver tip plate at the head; otherwise the fittings are the same.
These texts hold decades of experience and a great deal of heart. They are protected by copyright, C.A. Götz jr. GmbH. Please ask us before any use. Thank you for your appreciation.
