Yangqin, box-zither with lid
China
18th century?
Wood, steel pegs, metal strings
Gift of Maurice Bedot in 1913; collected by him in Singapore in 1890
MEG Inv. ETHMU 006366
Geolocate the object
Adapted from the Iranian santur, this yangqin - literally "foreign string instrument" –zither is thought to have been introduced from China at the end of the Ming dynasty, that is between the 15th and 16th century.
The instrument plays a melodic role in the ensembles it is part of.
This zither has fourteen playing strings, three of which are single strings of twisted wire and eleven triple strings of plain wire. Divided into two groups, these strings are held stretched by pegs aligned along the right and left edges of the sounding board and kept in place by two long bridges extending across the board. It is played by striking the strings using two slender bamboo hammers.
The lid of the instrument is decorated with floral motifs and has two calligraphed poetic texts on it which are translated here:
on the left:
"Hardly have they grown than already dense and tall
The bamboos in the courtyard form a green mass.
In the evening breeze over the hermitage, what joy
To be suddenly facing the moon rising over the shore.
I have gathered together a few verses from different ancient poems
celebrating bamboos, to write the poem I am calligraphing here.
The hermit Yun Quan."
and on the right:
"Firm and strong like the uprightness of a good man,
Elegant and pure like the morals of former times.
Written by the secluded scholar Yinyuan imitating the calligraphic style
Of [the artist's surname: the characters are no longer legible]"
(Original translation by G. Goormaghtigh)
A square piece of pink paper is stuck on the sounding board. On it is written the following warning: "Our shop (Xin Jin Sheng), located in Zhangxing Street, sells all kinds of string instruments. We urge our respected customers to pay attention to our firm's emblem and to beware of counterfeiters."
The image above is subject to copyright.
Copyrights for Photographic Reproduction
Registres d'inventaires historiques
Les feuillets numérisés des registres d'inventaires historiques sont soumise à un copyright.
Droits de reproduction photographique
Copie dactylographiée en 13 volumes de l'Inventaire original MEG manuscrit
Registres_inventaire_dactylographie/183.pdf
Registre d'inventaire original - non indexé
Registres_inventaire_original/Registre_01_000159_006685.pdf
Instrument collections
In a study based on the MEG collection, published in 1919, the anthropologist and doctor Georges Montandon attempted to trace the origins and descent of musical instruments throughout the world. He grouped the instruments in ensembles, presented as plates of photographs and drawings. The study ends with a geographical sketch map showing the distribution of different types of instruments across the world.
As the study was read in scientific circles, the MEG’s instrument collection, classified in this manner, was widely quoted and used by researchers working on rational classification. The diffusionist approach was later abandoned to the benefit of comparative organology and contextual inventories.
Chordophones
The sound of stringed instruments depends on several factors, the main two being the material used for the strings (metal, plant fibres, leather, nylon, etc.) and the way they are played (plucked, bowed or struck). The greatest diversity of string instruments is found in Africa and some, such as the harp lute are specific to that continent. In various parts of Asia, the development of particularly rich musical repertoires is closely related to the development of instrument making. The vielle, a bowed stringed instrument, is emblematic of numerous musical traditions in Europe, where the instrument varies in shape and name.
Bibliograpy
- Picard, François. 1988. CD Chine. Musique classique. Paris : Ocora-Radio France HM83
- Aubert, Laurent. 1991. Planete musicale, instruments de musique des cinq continents. Turin: Ivrea., 83
- Picard, François. 1988. CD Chine, Musique classique. Paris: Ocora C 559039.
