In Ypres, the museum team immediately got to work reconstructing the story. Scientific employee Annick Vandenbilcke emphasizes how complex that was: “The name was common, and the inscription provided little guidance. Thanks to painstaking detective work, we were eventually able to find Louis De Backer’s military file, including a portrait.”
The violin will have a place in the museum’s donation cupboard for a year, between the knowledge center and the museum café. Director Stephen Lodewyck: “The fact that we were able to link the instrument to a name gives it a personal dimension. The violin will be on display to the public next year.”
The city of Ypres is also satisfied. Emmily Talpe, councilor of museums, says: “Thanks to the attention in Sint-Niklaas, this violin was not lost. Here it can be preserved, studied and displayed.”
The In Flanders Fields Museum calls on possible relatives of Louis De Backer to come forward with additional information or memorabilia.