Soil Stradivarius

The Soil (Pronounced 'Swal') Stradivarius was one of the most prized and unique instruments ever made by the legendary Antonio Stradivari, and after the events of the nuclear war, may be the only Stradivarius left in existence, and indeed, could be thought of as utterly priceless, as the knowledge and technology to craft such instruments has long since died.

It´s also a quest item for Agatha's Song.

The only reason for the Soil's survival was due to it falling into the hands of a talented, yet naive young violinist, Hilda Egglebrecht, who was selected to enter Vault 92 as part of Vault-Tec's desire to 'preserve musical talent'. However, after the experiment conducted in the Vault went awry, the Soil was locked away in its own perfectly crafted case, designed to maintain the right humidity and temperature to keep the violin in optimum condition.

Agatha is, essentially, the rightful heir of the Soil Stradivarius, given that she is directly descended from Hilda, although the instrument can be sold on to other merchants for a small sum. The ghoul bartender in the Ninth Circle in the Underworld will buy it from you for 200 caps (300 with a successful Speech check), as will Abraham Washington in Rivet City.

Trivia

 * Assumption: We may relate the appearance of this particular violin as a partial tribute to the Perlman name, as one of the living copies of the soil violins is owned today by Itzhak Perlman. Could be a mere coincidence tough.