1924 Gibson TL-4 Tenor Lute Used

This tenor lute has a couple of unusual features, the most obvious being that it’s a TL-4, with the reddish sunburst top finish found on A-4 and F-4 mandolin models. It’s also the first Gibson tenor lute we’ve seen with the tiny banjo bridge instead of the ebony adjustable bridge Gibson was giving almost all their mandolins by this date (the only bridge scars to the original top finish are from the bridge shown, with no sign a mandolin bridge was ever mounted). According to Joe Spann, while there were earlier FONs for batches of tenor lutes, this is from the earliest FON for TL-4 models (Joe has also never seen another TL which was clearly shipped with a banjo bridge).

This example is original throughout. The finish looks rather shiny because the instrument was kinda dirty and cleaning it gave the original shellac varnish a gloss that will fade with time. There are no cracks, and no sign of any repairs. The original pickguard was succumbing to celluloid rot and was removed but it’s stashed in a plastic bag in the original case.