Arthur Richard Bultitude (14 January 1908 – 1990)

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

musical instrument

bow maker A bow maker is a person who builds, repairs, and restores ancient or modern bows for bowed string instruments. These include violins, violas, cellos, double basses, viola d'amore, viola da gamba, etc. The French word for bowmaker (bow maker) is ...

, who spent much of his life working as a craftsman for the firm of W.E. Hill & Sons. Bultitude was brought to and introduced to the Hill shop by William Napier (father of Frank Napier another exceptional Hill bow maker) at the age of 14. Bultitude developed a close relationship with William Charles Retford, one of the foremost Hill makers after

James Tubbs James Tubbs (1835 – 1921) is one of the most celebrated English bow makers, and is considered "The English Tourte". Together with his son Alfred (d. 1912), he produced more than 5,000 bows. It is generally accepted that James Tubbs ranks among ...

. Bultitude worked for the Hill shop from 1922 until 1961, after which he set up his own shop where he continued to make bows based on the same model set up by

Alfred Hill Alfred Hill may refer to: * Alfred John Hill (1862–1927), British railway engineer * Alfred Hill (cricketer, born 1865) (1865–1936), English cricketer * Alfred Hill (politician) (1867–1945), British Member of Parliament for Leicester West 19 ...

(the Tourte model). However he slowly moved away and made individual Bows built to suit particular customers. His bows are typically decorated with a silver

Tudor Rose The Tudor rose (sometimes called the Union rose) is the traditional floral heraldic badge, heraldic emblem of England and takes its name and origins from the House of Tudor, which united the House of Lancaster and the House of York. The Tudor ...

. The bows made for W.E. Hill & Sons are marked with number 6 on the tip under the bow hair.W.E. Hill & Sons (A Tribute) – Richard Sadler 1996 Bultitude was elected as Master of the

Art Workers' Guild The Art Workers' Guild is an organisation established in 1884 by a group of British painters, sculptors, architects, and designers associated with the ideas of William Morris and the Arts and Crafts movement. The guild promoted the 'unity of a ...

References

Sources

Profile at Hill Bows
*Bows and Bowmakers – W.C. Retford 1964 *W.E. Hill & Sons (A Tribute) – Richard Sadler 1996 *

External links

Bow makers British luthiers 1908 births 1990 deaths Members of the Order of the British Empire Masters of the Art Worker's Guild {{England-musician-stub