Your opportunity is coming up. A Stradavarius violin — the Joachim-Ma Stradavarius — is going up for auction soon.
You’ll probably need somewhere between $12 and $18 million.
Here are some facts about Stradavarius and his violins:
- He lived from 1644 to 1737 in Cremona, Italy.
- This time period (late 17th to early 18th century) is considered the golden period of violin craftsmanship.
- He created 960 violins.
- Approximately 650 might still exist today, but 282 are known to exist.
- 44 have their own Wikipedia pages.
- The current record price paid for one of his violins is $15.9 million for the Lady Blunt Stradavarius in 2011.
What makes a Stradavarius so special?
(Capital “S”) Status.
Yes, one can discuss sound quality, craftsmanship, materials, artistic beauty, investment value, and historical significance. These may be true, but they’re in the eye of the beholder.
You’ll pay $12-18 million for a Stradavarius because of the way it will make you feel in relation to other humans. Only a certain subset of the population could even think about the purchase of a Strad. If you’re part of that sub-culture, a Strad helps make sense of how you see yourself and your place in the world.
“People like me own (do/say/care about) things like this.”
That’s a good lesson for anybody out there trying to make change in the world. We all care about status.
Even those who don’t care about Status.
