ZeroSette Tonemaster 1963/4 - Italian (Welson style)

Where do i start with this unique piece of guitar history? OK, there was a maker called Welson who produced guitars almost identical to this style, but this one was made under a different name - Zero Sette. It is from 1963/4 and is Italian in origin.

Given its age the condition is incredible. One saddle has been replaced from a roller to a standard on the high "E", but from what I can see the rest looks very original. All pickup switches operate as they should. These operate by engaging the one you want, this action disengages the previous setting. There is also an "off" option.
You have a master volume and tone wheels either side of these selectors.

It has a vintage (Jaguar-esque) tremolo system, it just has to be the ultimate surf players dream.
This one even has its own web page!

Here are the details from that site - 

With the old Italian guitars the unexpected has always to be expected, but this one really made me doubt my eyes. Look: at first glance it looks like a regular Welson but each and every component is something absolutely unique.

Body upper part is purely Welson, as are control layout, glued-in neck attachment, and the 22 frets fretboard. But the latter shows something quite strange: on a closer look you’ll notice that the diamond inlays are not quite like the usual Welson design, they are notched.

No hint of a third cutaway. The pickguard is loosely similar to Welson’s but with noticeable differences. The rocker switches display pictograms never seen anywhere else (a shame, they indicate very intuitively which pickups are activated). Vibrato assembly, obviously original, is based on the generic device used by Welson and others in the early 60’s but the geometric shaping is a wonderful upgrade. So many one-off components for one industrially made instrument, it’s truly unbelievable.

Grid top pickups are made on the Bartolini standard. Headstock is a specific design. With two logos: are both original? Maybe. A sensible hypothesis would be that Imperial Tonemaster ordered a few samples from Welson (and/or from their subcontractor Polverini), and that those ended up being distributed in USA through Zerosette, that was a known accordion brand but otherwise never sold guitars under its own name in America.