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Arched harp; ennanga

Ennanga, arched harp. The resonator is a shallow wooden shell. The skin soundtable is stitched to a piece of leather covering the back of the instrument, with long stiches giving the appearance of lacing on a drum head. The curved neck enters the resonator cavity through the membrane. The nine pegs are in the shape of a stepped double cone (one broken). Each string is tied round the ridge on the peg; it passes behind the neck and is hooked round the opposite end of the peg. Below each peg, except the one for the lowest note, is a ring covered with lizard skinl. Four of these retain the slivers of wood that wedge them into position. At their lower ends, the strings pass through the membrane, where they are attached to a wooden stringholder that passes along the length of the bowl and projects at each end. A cord and cloth handle is attached to the back of the instrument

  • Culture:Bu Nyoro
  • Period:
  • Materials:grass, textile, vegetable fibre, hide, wood
  • Specific materials/techniques:
  • Decorative elements:
  • Inscriptions:
  • Hornbostel-Sachs category:322.111 Arched harps - Wachsmann type 1
  • Repository:Horniman Museum and Gardens
  • Measurements:overall: 845 x 241 x 195 mm