Expert: Jim Ryan - 4/6/2010

Question
I recently had a banjo stolen from me.  Now I am stuck trying to file an insurance claim for something that I have never had officially appraised.  The banjo was passed down from my Grandfather who got it many years ago for compensation for some work that he did. The Banjo has four strings, it says prairie across the top, dark wood and white leather drum.  Mint condition.  I am not sure if prairie is the make or the model.  I have searched everywhere and cannot find any prairie tenor banjos.  I once took it into a music shop and the guy there wanted to give me two electric guitars and a year worth of lessons so it must be valuable.  How would you go about getting an appraisal for this item.  I have a picture of me playing it if that would help but not on me now I will try and get that to you asap.

Answer
Hi Curt --

Very sorry to hear about the banjo theft.  If it's a four-string Banjo, that means it is a "tenor banjo" and very likely dates from the 1910-1940 period.  It's not older than that because older banjos have 5 strings (the four-string banjo is a 20th century innovation).  I have not heard of the "Prairie" brand, so I can't help with that.  I would guess that the word Prairie is the brand name, though, not a model name.  If you can send a photo, I might be able to speculate further.  If it is in great condition and is highly ornamented, it may be of some value to a collector, but keep in mind that four string banjos are much less popular than five string banjos these days, and thus its value will be somewhat less than a five string banjo of similar quality.

To find out more, contact the folks at www.bernunzio.com.  Bernunzio in Rochester, NY, is the premier dealer in rare banjos.  If anyone knows about this banjo, it will be him, or Jim Bollman http://www.fineoldbanjos.com/).  Bollman is THE leading collector of old banjos and might have information for you, although most of his collection is older, nineteenth century instruments.

Best of luck, and I hope you manage to get the banjo back to its rightful home.

Jim Ryan