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Appalachian dulcimer
Alternate name:Fretted zither
Alternate name:Mountain dulcimer
Date: 1880 ca.
Place Made:Harlan County, Kentucky, United States, North America
Model: none
Serial No: none
Signednone
MarkingsDiscoloration on backside of instrument, most likely wear from playing and uneven varnish.
DescriptionHour-glass shaped
4 strings
body: wooden (walnut), box body with top and bottom extending slightly beyond sides; sides tucked into slots cut into end blocks; body expands gradually from pegbox to top bouts, narrows to waist, expands to bottom bouts, and narrows to tailpiece
pegbox: carved-out, wooden pegbox, closed back; simplified scroll with three-dimensional carving on proximal and dorsal planes, not the laterals
nut: wooden nut set into groove carved on fretboard/box-side of joint between fretboard/box and pegbox; four slits cut into nut as string guides
bridge: wooden bridge set into groove carved on fretboard/box; four slits cut into bridge as string guides
saddle: metal wire saddle set into edge of wooden fretboard/box
fretboard/box: fretboard carved out on underside forming the typical “u”-shaped fretboard/box - glued; depressed portion of fretboard/box begins after last fret and extends to bridge; fretboard/box extends to ends of sound box
strings: four metal strings, one missing; tied around metal screws and wrapped at pegs
tuning pegs: four, wooden (maple), turned, laterally-inserted, friction pegs with articulated grips
end button: two metal screws driven into endblock act as end buttons; two strings attached at each screw
sound holes: two, small heart-shaped soundholes cut through top - located centrally on lower bout; one on each side of fretboard/box
4 strings
body: wooden (walnut), box body with top and bottom extending slightly beyond sides; sides tucked into slots cut into end blocks; body expands gradually from pegbox to top bouts, narrows to waist, expands to bottom bouts, and narrows to tailpiece
pegbox: carved-out, wooden pegbox, closed back; simplified scroll with three-dimensional carving on proximal and dorsal planes, not the laterals
nut: wooden nut set into groove carved on fretboard/box-side of joint between fretboard/box and pegbox; four slits cut into nut as string guides
bridge: wooden bridge set into groove carved on fretboard/box; four slits cut into bridge as string guides
saddle: metal wire saddle set into edge of wooden fretboard/box
fretboard/box: fretboard carved out on underside forming the typical “u”-shaped fretboard/box - glued; depressed portion of fretboard/box begins after last fret and extends to bridge; fretboard/box extends to ends of sound box
strings: four metal strings, one missing; tied around metal screws and wrapped at pegs
tuning pegs: four, wooden (maple), turned, laterally-inserted, friction pegs with articulated grips
end button: two metal screws driven into endblock act as end buttons; two strings attached at each screw
sound holes: two, small heart-shaped soundholes cut through top - located centrally on lower bout; one on each side of fretboard/box
Dimensionslength: 36 in (762 mm)
width:
upper bout: 5.625 in (142.88 mm)
lower bout: 7.125 in (180.98 mm)
width:
upper bout: 5.625 in (142.88 mm)
lower bout: 7.125 in (180.98 mm)
ProvenanceArne B. Larson Collection, Vermillion, South Dakota, 1979.
Terms
Credit Line: Arne B. Larson Collection, 1979
Not on view
Published ReferencesSmith, L. Allen. A Catalogue of Pre-Revival Appalachian Dulcimers. Columbia, Missouri: University of Missouri, 1983, 93.
Object number: 01123