Herringbone

This is an ornamental design that was inspired by the bone pattern of the herring, a small and otherwise insignificant food species fish that is caught in huge quantities, salted and smoked. Nobody is really sure when herringbone was first used, but it is quite often found as a decorative pattern on acoustic guitars. It may be used in the soundhole rosette, as an accent along the back seam or even as body binding. It is used on both classical (nylon-string) and Spanish (steel-string) acoustic guitars. One of the most notable instruments that uses the herringbone pattern is the Martin HD-28, in which the letter “H” actually stands for “herringbone.” In fact, the guitar was originally called the Herringbone D-28 upon its release in 1946.