Madrid luthier Juan Alvarez Gil (1932-2001) began building guitars with his elder brother Lorenzo, a cabinet maker in the late 1940s. At first they sold these badly made guitars in El Rastro, a flea market. As their guitars improved, they sold them to music stores. Later Juan was befriended by Marcelo Barbero (1904-1956), one of the great guitar makers of the last century, and he became Juan's mentor, offering him his advice and counsel, from which he acknowledged that he benefited enormously. In 1952, Juan Alvarez established his own workshop. This 1983 Juan Alvarez 1a quality flamenca negra, and an example of his best work at the time. The materials are all top notch. The back and sides are almost certainly Brazilian rosewood (straight grain rosewood is rarer, and is less likely to crack than slab cut wood with beautiful figures, and so is preferred by experienced luthiers). The guitar set up is exactly as it should be for flamenco, and there is enough bone showing above the saddle to adjust the action should this be desired. The state of the finish is excellent, apart from a few nail marks (see photos).