1918 Gibson A-2

One hundred years ago, the archtop mandolin was still a relatively new instrument. This new style—with its carved top and carved back—was spearheaded by a clever luthier named Orville Gibson. In July 1917, the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Co. opened production in its new location at 225 Parsons Street in Kalamazoo, Michigan. From that location, Gibson would go on to build first the most iconic mandolins and then later some of the most iconic guitars ever made in the United States. This Gibson A-2 rolled out of the famous Parsons Street factory in Kalamazoo in 1918. In those days, the Gibson mandolin design was rapidly evolving—somewhere in between the turn-of-the-century old time mandolins and Lloyd Loar's F-5, which would introduce the critical bluegrass sound. This A-2 features the classic A-model teardrop shape with a carved Spruce top, carved Maple back, and a bound oval soundhole. At some point along the way, this A-2 was restored and brought up to a modern level of playability and func