Born in Sesto Cremonese in 1756, Giovanni Battista Ceruti worked as a weaver for several years, before becoming interested in violin making probably only after he had reached the age of forty. Although in the past he was considered a pupil of Lorenzo Storioni, today it is thought that his ties may have been closer with the Bergonzi brothers, Nicola and Carlo II, as well as with a Cremonese nobleman with a passion for violin making, Count Alessandro Maggi, who was also in contact with Cozio di Salabue.
Ceruti undoubtedly benefited from the temporary absence of Storioni from Cremona starting from 1802, and in the following decade he began a good production of instruments, later also being assisted by his son Giuseppe. In the style of Giovanni Battista, there is an effort to return to the taste of the Cremonese makers of the first half of the eighteenth century, with a better stylistic awareness and attention to detail than his immediate predecessors, although very often the materials available in those years in Cremona could not compete with those of the past. Ceruti's favorite model is therefore quite classical in inspiration, with elegant corners and a well-executed purfling. The F-holes are also delicate, particularly their wings and the upper eye, and partly influenced by an Amatisé taste. The head has a slender peg-box and a rather wide volute. Seen from the front, the scroll is particular for having its narrowest part moved forward, with a trend that is then repeated also in the second turn.
