I don't play violin, but I play guitar and have built guitars. There has always been a lot of magical thinking about vintage guitars (and the very specific species of rare woods that they are made from) that just doesn't seem right to me in my experience. It doesn't surprise me that the same thing happens in the violin community.

That said, I'm glad that these historical instruments are so carefully preserved. Violins are very delicate, and to compensate for that, they designed to be almost infinitely repairable. But that only happens if they are perceived to be significant enough to justify the work.