If this fiddle shows up on Kijiji, call the cops not the 'seller'

What's worth roughly $10,000 but is invaluable to its owner? 

A Hopf fiddle that was stolen from a locked Jeep in southeast Calgary on Sunday.

The owner, a Scottish musician based in Calgary, says sometimes an artist builds a connection over time to that perfect instrument that makes it priceless.

"It's about 200 years old — completely irreplaceable," Lynsey Mackenzie told the Calgary Eyeopener on Thursday.

"Fiddles are so individual. Instruments just become an extension of your body, you become so familiar with that instrument."

'It was just my baby. I just love it'

"Fiddle players often talk about finding 'the one,' this one fiddle that you would never sell, you would never part with. And this was my fiddle. It was just my baby. I just love it."

It was stolen Sunday from her locked Jeep parked at her home in the southeast neighbourhood of Sundance.

Mackenzie said she doesn't leave her prized possession in her car, but this time she stepped away for a moment to comfort her toddler.

"It's just really upsetting because I'm so cautious with it and never leave it there, but trying to juggle motherhood and fiddles sometimes is a bit of a challenge."

Mackenzie said her interaction with Calgary police, however, was productive and even educational.

Const. Steve Adair of the online stolen property unit says he cautions people to avoid posting a stolen item to social media because it signals to the thief to be more discreet.

"When they see a post that shows an item they have just stolen, now everyone knows it's a stolen item, it's going to be very hard for them to sell," Adair told CBC News.

"That's when it will go underground and we won't see it at all or we could see it a year down the road once the heat is down."

In most cases, it's best to let police do their job, he said.

"Call the police, get the report on the system. Let us have a bit of time to work in the background. Give us some time to develop a profile on the offender before we go the media route," Adair said.

Adair is also a musician, who has played for about seven years with other members of the police service in a country rock band, Frontline.

The stolen fiddle's case is black with a bunch of stickers, including ones from Scotland and Nashville.

Mackenzie is offering a no-questions-asked reward of $1,000 for tips leading to the return of her fiddle.

"We just want it back," she said.

Please contact Calgary police with any information at 403-266-1234 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 to remain anonymous.

With files from the Calgary Eyeopener