Vintage Hopf? "Contra-lute" (1900)
  These instruments were very popular from 1800, until the beginning of  1900. The brand we cannot know exactly, although it could be Hopf from the fret markers.
  It has a spruce top, the body and sides are  maple and all woods are solid. 
  Has  65 cm scale for the first 6 strings and 85 cm for the 6 lowest strings, the total length is 125 cm.
  The fingerboard is made of ebony and the construction of the neck, or neck is whole in one piece of maple. Nickel silver frets and ebony capos. It has an original metal bar that maintains tension for the bass strings.
  It was built in Germany around 1900, in a traditional way. And it is a very high quality instrument built with very chosen materials and with a high degree of detail, and very ornate.
  The rosette of the mouth is original made of wood (it looks like walnut) built on 2 levels with an intricate carving, which remains intact despite the years, like the instrument in general.
  It incorporates original wooden pegbox, with rosewood pins, with screws in each one, which allow to adjust the friction, for a better performance. One of these pieces, the last one is shorter.
  The original nickel silver frets have been reconditioned and are in excellent condition, polished and shiny. It has some rosewood frets on the top.
  It has been fully restored and adjusted for proper operation.
  Without major repairs and all its parts are original. It has the correct height to play and tunes perfectly at all frets.
  The neck is perfectly straight and solid like the rest of the instrument, and the tuners work well. It is strung with new nylon strings for vintage Hannabach guitars.
  It also maintains the original varnish, although on the sides and bottom it has scratches, taps and small scratches,  its general condition is very good.
  Some small crack near the mouth, which can be seen in the photos, on the lid, has been professionally repaired and sealed, and does not affect the proper functioning at all.
  The strings of the longest neck are played in the air, without stepping on it. They are tuned in the scale of the subject that you are going to play, they are similar to the strings of the harp.
 Its previous owner, (already very old) inherited it from his grandfather and from what we know it was bought in Bavaria in a family workshop in Lutheria.
  The instrument is fully operational, working well and with a great sound !!