Purfling is a narrowdecorative edge inlaid into thetop plate and often the back plate of astringed instrument. It was originally made oflaminated strips of wood, and laternacre and other hard inlay materials. Plastic is commonly used in modern mass-produced instruments. Purfling may affect the instrument's acoustics.
Purfling is distinct frombinding, which is used primarily to control moisture rather than decoration. Inexpensive instruments may simulate purfling withpaint.
Purfling is a narrow decorative edge inlaid into thetop plate and often the back plate of astringed instrument. Purfling was originally made oflaminated strips of wood, often contrasting in color as a visual accent. The earliest known example of purfling is on aviolin made byAndrea Amati in 1564, now on display in theAshmolean Museum atOxford University. It consists of two outer strips ofpearwood stained black and an inner strip of poplar.[1]
Eventually,nacre from shell, usuallymother of pearl orabalone, and other hard inlay materials were incorporated to provide highly decorative effects. Elaborate inlay is found most often onfretted instruments. Laminates and composites made from nacreous shell and synthetic materials, described as "fake", "faux", or "shin paua", are sometimes used byluthiers.
Today,plastic purfling is commonplace in mass-produced instruments.[citation needed] One common example of plastic purfling is a sandwich of three alternating strips in black and white, measuring about 1.25 mm × 2.00 mm (3⁄64 in × 5⁄64 in). However, many distinctive variations are used.
The channel cut for the inlay of purfling may increase the flexibility of the plates where they join the sides, affecting an instrument'spitch andsustain. In cases of heavy decorative inlay, the effective vibrational area of thesound board may be reduced.
Binding is a narrow outer strip of material on the edges of the body of stringed instruments such aslutes,mandolins,guitars andukuleles. Binding may be made of thin wood strips. It is applied along the entire edge of top and back plates. While it can provide a decorative function, the primary purpose of binding is to block the transfer of moisture by thehygroscopicend grain of the plates of the instrument. This prevents cracks in a way that purfling cannot. It also reduces wear to instrument body edges. Hardwood, fruitwood, plastics and other synthetic materials are commonly used to make bindings.
Binding may be used along the sides offingerboards of fretted instruments. It softens the feel of theneck as one's fretting hand slides past the thin metal ends offret wire, and it provides decorative appeal.
Inexpensive instruments may have no purfling and instead produce a similar decorative effect withpaint.
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