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Damaru

This instrument was collected by Mr. Robert Galtress, who was surveyor for a route for an oil pipeline which would run from the North East India (Assam) to Gauhati in the foothills of the Himalayas. He received the drum from an old Tibetan monk who was fleeing from the Chinese invasion of Tibet. The monk was very glad to encounter an European who would buy his belongings, as this would provide enough food and money for him to reach Damsala and join the Dalai Lama. The monk was destitute and sold Mr. Galtress most of what he was traveling with, but parted with it gladly, and told Galtress he wanted to give as well as receive. It is a double-headed, rattle drum with an hourglass-shaped wooden body and glued animal skin membranes. Around the waist of the body is a cloth band from which two fabric-covered pellets are suspended with cord. When playing, these pellets are meant to strike the drum heads. Attached to this same band is a cloth handle from which is suspended a decorative tail following the Tibetan tradition.

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  • Decorative elements:Decorative tail with beads, five-coloured silk valance brocade, and several three-coloured silk tassels. Four beads (transparent and green) are also attached to the central band at the point where the pellet's cord suspends.
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  • Hornbostel-Sachs category:212.241 Individual hourglass-shaped rattle drums
  • Repository:Saffron Walden Museum
  • Measurements:Width: 110mm; Diameter: 200mm; Height (with banners): 600mm