Rims with metal spun over wood (spunover rims) were common from the 1880s on, though they probably date back to the 1860s (at least Frank Ford at www.frets.com has a picture of a banjo with on that he says is from the 1860s). They lasted into the 20th century, then began losing popularity in favor of heavier rims and tonerings. Fretless and a spunover rim with lots of brackets seems to be somewhat of a contradiction as by the time lots of brackets came into style, fretless was pretty much out of style. It may have been custom made (or adapted) for a player who wanted a fretless banjo.
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