ITALIAN VIRGINAL BY BAPTISTA CARGNONUS SALODIJ, SALO 1682

ITALIAN VIRGINAL BY BAPTISTA CARGNONUS SALODIJ, SALO 1682
The virginal of Baptista Cargnonus Salodij has an unaltered patina on the outside. The original green-bluish version is apparently still preserved.
The instrument is signed "Baptista Cargnonus Salodij MDCLXXXII" above the keyboard. It was built in a false-inner-outer construction.
During the restoration by Bernhard von Tucher, extreme care was taken to preserve as much of the original substance as possible, but to achieve reliable playability. The jumpers are new, some historical ones are still present separately.
The keyboard (C-f3 [C, D, E, F, G, A-f3 as short octave]) has in parts tone letters on the keys. There are some new key fronts. The 3-octave-span is 51.4cm. Currently the instrument is equipped with quills.
Underneath the keys of the lowest octave as well as under the bottom board of the instrument there are visible traces of a previous pedal.
The c2-scale is 318mm, the f2-scale is 247mm.
Dimensions of the instrument:
Length: 1512mm
Width: 475mm
Total height: 877mm
Body height: 200mm
This instrument has an extraordinary history, which also explains its external condition.
When Prof. Dr. R. Ewerhart visited an antique shop in nothern Italiy in the area of the southern foothills of the Alps in search of new exhibits for his collection (an old chair placed on the side of the road showed that antiques were being sold here), he overheard a conversation between the shop owner and a customer during which the shop owner was offered an old piano in a box. This served as a feed box for chicken. After a short conversation, it was agreed that the owner would bring this feed box to the antique shop on the next day and that it would be examined by Mr. Ewerhart. The exact modalities of the sale are not known, but in any case, the virginal found its way from the henhouse to the collection.
Three other instruments by Baptista Cargnonus Salodiensis are known so far:
Italy, Bologna, Collezione Giulini: Virginal, Baptista Carenonus Salodij, 1700,
Italy, Rome, Museo strumenti musicali: Virginal, Baptista Cargnonus Salodij, 1695,
USA, New York, Florence & Herbert Irving Harpsichord, Baptista Cargnonus Salodiensis, 1689.
The presented virginal from 1682 is so far the oldest known by this maker.
A detailed restoration report is included.