Electric guitar belonging to Chuck Berry, nicknamed "Maybellene": Museum Object and Cultural History

The object in the museum catalogue

A Gibson ES-350T semi-acoustic guitar named Maybellene. The wood is light, and the tuning keys are damaged. A black and orange label with the serial number (A33643) and where the guitar was made (Kalamazoo, MI) can be seen through one of the F-holes. The case is treated canvas on wood with velvet lining.

Materials, dates and provenance

• Date: 1959
• Manufactured by: Gibson Guitar Corp., American, founded 1894
• Owned by: Chuck Berry, American, 1926 - 2017
• Subject of: Chess Records, American, founded 1950
• Type: guitars
• Medium: wood and metal
• Dimensions: 41 x 17 x 4 in. (104.1 x 43.2 x 10.2 cm)
• Topic: African American
• Topic: Musicians
• Topic: Rock and roll (Music)
• Object number: 2011.137.2
• Credit Line: Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Donation of Charles E. Berry
• Data Source: National Museum of African American History and Culture

Sources and reuse

Catalogue descriptions and facts adapted from National Museum of African American History and Culture through the Smithsonian's official Open Access dataset. This record explicitly marks its metadata CC0 1.0; formatting and selection have been changed. The displayed image also has an explicit CC0 designation. The underlying object's rights statement is: 1960 Gibson Guitar Corporation Proper usage is the responsibility of the user.