A rare guitar crafted nearly two centuries ago now rests in the permanent collection at the Moravian Historical Society, offering visitors a glimpse into the origins of American acoustic guitar making and the region’s rich musical heritage.
The 1834 Stauffer-style Martin and Schatz guitar, made from birdseye maple and spruce, was created in New York City by Christian Frederick Martin, Sr. and Henry Schatz. C. F. Martin & Co., Inc. has placed the instrument on long-term loan with the Nazareth museum.
The guitar’s story connects directly to the region. Martin and Schatz trained together as apprentices under Johann Georg Stauffer in Vienna, Austria, and continued their collaboration during Martin’s first decade in the United States while he worked on Hudson Street in New York City. Schatz lived just outside Nazareth, and when Martin’s wife Ottilia visited the Schatz family, the connection eventually led the Martins to relocate from New York City to Cherry Hill, just north of Nazareth…