Jefferson Edition OO-SP

Huss and Dalton Guitar Co., Inc, is proud to announce the creation of a special, meticulously crafted, commemorative guitar. The Jefferson Edition 00-SP Custom guitar has been made possible by the cooperation of the Thomas Jefferson Foundation, the organization that owns and operates Jefferson’s Virginia mountaintop home, Monticello.

The Jefferson Edition 00-SP Custom is made of woods that are native to Virginia, the state that Jefferson loved so well. The gorgeous back, sides, rosette, and peg head veneer are crafted from the Tulip poplar that sat at the northwest corner of Jefferson’s home for almost two centuries, planted during Jefferson’s lifetime: “The earliest ring of the upper section of the northwest tree crossdated to 1822, but the lower radii crossdated to 1808.”*

The top of the guitar is made of thermo-cured Appalachian red spruce. Thermo-curing, a process that involves low heat in an oxygen-free oven, simulates the same sort of aging that makes a guitar sound vintage right out of the case. Neck and body bindings are made of black walnut, and the fingerboard and bridge are made of persimmon, all Virginia native species.

The fretboard inlays of the Jefferson Edition 00-SP Custom, designed and created by Jeff Huss and Mark Dalton, depict an old-fashioned inkwell and quill pen similar to those that may have been used to sign the Declaration of Independence, as well as its first four words: “When in the course….” In an unusual design move, the back of the guitar bears the introduction to the Declaration, along with Thomas Jefferson’s facsimile signature. We had this custom recreation laser-etched into the wood by the talented craftspeople at the workshop of Taylor & Boody, Staunton’s famous organ builders.

The Jefferson Edition 00-SP Custom comes in a custom Cedar Creek tweed hard case with a sateen interior cover, also bearing Jefferson’s facsimile signature. The Jefferson Edition OO-SP Custom is available in limited edition, beginning in January 2019. A portion of each sale supports Monticello’s dual mission of preservation and education.