kamanche

Two-stringed bowed spike fiddle called a kamanche. Made of coconut shell, wood, skin and horse hair. The two main strings each comprise multiple strands of horse hair, although most kamanches have four metal strings. The spherical body is made from a coconut shell with sevearl pierced circles and has a skin sound table. The instrument stands on an iron spike, which connects through the wooden body to a conical wooden neck terminating in a pegbox with two pegs and a finial. The strings run from the wooden pegs over a moveable wood bridge to a metal ring that encircles the top of the spike. Played in the fashion of a cello with a bow (missing).