ESP has teamed up with acclaimed artist Dumitru “Dino” Marudian for the limited edition Pyrograph Nosferatu Electric Guitar.
The ax itself is the latest addition to the brand’s six-string Pyrograph series and pays homage to “one of the greatest movies of all time” by sporting an intricately designed handcrafted piece of Nosferatu artwork.
Specifically, the image of Nosferatu – the vampire from the 1922 film based on Bram Stroker’s 1897 Dracula novel – was composed by Marudian using his innovative pyrography method, which burns highly detailed artwork directly into wood.
Due to the complexity of the construction and the uniqueness of the imagery, only 15 pieces will be available worldwide.
In terms of more conventional specs, the construction is based on the brand’s Eclipse single-cutaway shape and features a chambered mahogany body. It is paired with a solid maple top, on which the artwork is engraved, as well as a three-piece mahogany neck.
The neck-through is topped with an ebony fingerboard, which in turn features 22 Jescar stainless steel frets and split flag inlays. Other hardware appointments include a TonePros locking bridge and tailpiece, bone nut, and Sperzel tuners.
As for the electronics, the Pyrograph Nosferatu uses a pair of high-output Seymour Duncan Black Winter humbuckers—hand-wound by Maricela “MJ” Juarez in Duncan’s custom shop—which are at the mercy of a selector at three-way, two volume settings and a master tone control.
There is also a push/pull coil split on the tone pot, which provides access to single coil tones.
The ESP USA Pyrograph Nosferatu is available for £14,199 (about $18,525).
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Muradian and ESP teamed up in December 2020 for the flagship line of Pyrograph guitars, which consisted of double cutaways and hand-burnt single cutaways. Late last year the brand announced an NFT collection based on the guitars in the line.
As well as the Pyrograph range, Muradian has also collaborated with ESP on a number of designs dating back to the 1990s, including a wood-fired version of George Lynch’s signature Skulls & Snakes and an EX-shaped deer skull design. designed for James Hetfield.