Fender Custom Shop's Yuriy Shishkov has impressed us before with his stunning one-off creations, including the Master Repeater Tele and the Studioliner. His latest offering for NAMM 2020 is a bejeweled Stratocaster inspired by a Fabergé egg.
The Imperial Coronation egg was made for Tsar Nicholas II and given to his wife, Empress Alexandra Fyodorovna, in 1897. It then sat atop a jeweled carriage at the Tsarina's winter palace, but was later seized by the government and eventually put up for sale. It has since changed hands a number of times, and has even made it to the movies – where the Oceans 12 are challenged to steal it.
For his "most complicated and intriguing project" so far, Fender Custom Shop's Master Builder Yuriy Shishkov was inspired by the famous art piece, spending 16 months creating the Coronation Stratocaster.
The striking instrument features gilded silver artwork, a Guilloche pattern on the wood that's topped with gold leaf, custom-fabricated diamond eagle medallions, and neck with lattice-like diamond patterning. Hundreds of diamonds have been used throughout. And the US$560,000 guitar even comes with a limited edition reproduction of the Imperial Coronation Egg.
Nestled among other NAMM goodies gathered by Fender – including Jimmy Page and Eric Johnson signature models, a Telecaster made using wood reclaimed from wine barrels at the Beaulieu vineyard, and a "Sugar Skull" Strat painted by Pamelina – is a curvy $33,000 guitar inspired by the Saleen 1 sports car.
The work of Master Builder Ron Thorn, the Stratocaster 1 rocks a hollow carbon fiber body with an alder center block and hand-carved maple top that's finished in high gloss candy apple red. There' a roasted maple neck topped by a carbon fiber fingerboard, ending in a headstock with carbon fiber overlay.
The TV Jones Power’Tron Plus bridge pickup is mounted below a tinted "rear window." The bridge and tailpiece are new for this model, and the guitar comes with a custom pedalboard with tone, volume and wah controls.
Fender has also taken four models celebrating the 70th anniversary of the introduction of the Broadcaster to NAMM, a guitar that was later renamed the Telecaster. These will only be available to buy during 2020.
The National Association of Music Merchants show at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, runs until January 19.
Source: Fender
