1936 Martin 2-30 Mandolin

Despite their esteemed reputation for guitars, C.F. Martin & Co. also built mandolins for nearly 100 years. Their early bowl-back designs were a perfect fit for classical mandolin players in the late 19th Century, but as the mandolin evolved in the early 20th Century, Martin mandolins never acheived great recognition from collectors or musicians. That was largely because most of Martin's mandolin designs—with flat backs, bent tops, and oval sound holes—were heavily influenced by guitar, and they simply didn't capture the same look or feel of other brands. Nevertheless, Martin introduced three models in the mid-'30s that featured carved Spruce tops, carved Maple backs, and traditional mandolin F-holes. These rare instruments may be the best-sounding Martin mandolins, and their feel and design will certainly be the most familiar to modern mandolin players. Of the three carved top and back models, the top-of-the-line 2-30 is the most rare. Between 1936 and 1942, only 64 were made, wh