An even closer look at the face underneath the sound hole reveals an inlay of mahogany separating the two halves of the book matched European spruce top. There are little touches like this all over both outside and inside the guitar, which point to the maker having been a very meticulous luthier.
This is a very fine instrument. It has an clean, open sound with very deep bass tones.
Update: 7/24/02: I recently decided to convert this guitar to a pin bridge. I was concerned about whether or not the original bracing would be adequate until I learned about a device called a Bridge Doctor. Here is what the guitar looks like now.
