The use of herringbone in guitar construction goes back to the early 17th century, when a shortage of ivory caused the luthiers of the time to resort to other materials for inlays.

As herrings provide very fine bones, it was found possible to create intricate patterns by dyeing the bones in different colours and creating extensive lateral decorative mosaics which were so thin that they did not adversely effect the tone of the instrument.

The luthiers also got to eat the fish, which was a good source of protein and low in cholesterol.

This practice died our when ivory was once again readily available, but survived in Germany until the 1830s, when the last luthier to use this method of decoration, a Herr Stauffer, retired.

One of his apprentices, a Herr C.F.Martin, emigrated to the USA to carry on his old master's tradition, but found that herring did not form part of the diet in Pennsylvania where he settled. Being a resourceful sort of chap, old CF decided to create a faux-herringbone effect using little pieces of wood scrap which he bound and glued together in chevron pattern strips which he then sliced thinly and used as decoration in the binding and purfling of his instruments. It was not as delicate as the fishy original, but his new American customers didn't know any better, and were charmed by the detail and obvious craftsmanship involved.

The herringbone tradition continues to this day, and any time a luthier wants to impart a sense of age and quality to his products, he obtains a strip of "herringbone" and applies it to the edge of the guitar's front or table.

Or that's what my old granny used to say!