52 BULLETIN 136, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



No. 55600 is "American style since 1875." When played the bell is 

 held upright. 



In the horns will be found a " Challenge light piston B-flat 

 euphonium, Courtois model," made of brass, silver plated, with 

 mouthpiece, finger buttons, and water key gold plated (55612). The 

 bell is held upright. It differs from the "baritone" in having a 

 larger base but has the same pitch. 



As a contra bass, or double bass horn, we have 55613, which is 

 similar in form and construction to 55612, but much lower in pitch. 

 The bell was held upright. It is called a bombardon. An " E-flat 

 contra bass or bombardon " is 55590, which is 53 inches in length. 

 It is the American military band style from 1850 to 1870 and was 

 played with the bell over the shoulder. A B-flat contra bass helicon 

 is 55592, made of German silver, in Germany. The tube is formed in 

 a coil 34 inches in diameter, sufficiently large to encircle the player, 

 the coil resting on his left shoulder and passing under his right arm 

 with the bell upright. It has three rotary valves and a conical 

 base from the valves to the bell. The valves have the cj^cle action. 



A brass horn from Barcelona, Spain (261730), has a windway of 

 about 89-jfV inches and a bell diameter of 7% inches. It has 3 rotary 

 valves and was played with the bell toward the front. 



An interesting group of oriental horns is exhibited. The horn is 

 not one of the ancient instruments of China, but the collection con- 

 tains two Chinese horns which are different from those obtained in 

 any other country. No. 54053 is a tube of sheet brass in two joints 

 soldered together with a crook, the lower end expanding into a bell. 

 The mouthpiece is a flat disk 2 inches in diameter with a hemi- 

 spherical cup in its center. It is said that a Chinese player took 

 all the disk in his mouth, the cup resting against his gums. No. 54053 

 is a Chinese trombone differing from the preceding in being straight 

 instead of curved. A Siamese trumpet is shown as 27293 (pi. 20c), 

 a gift from the King of Siam. A Korean trombone is 95209, a 

 straight conical tube in two sections, the upper section sliding into 

 or " telescoping " the lower section. The cupped mouthpiece is like 

 that of the Chinese horns. The specimen was collected by Col. 

 Augustine Heard, United States Legation, Seoul, Korea, in 1891. 

 A Burmese trumpet is 95507, a conical tube in five sections, painted 

 in different colors. It has three rude finger holes in the first section. 

 From Bengal, India, is 92710, a horn made of very thin copper in 

 five curved sections which are jointed together, forming two sections 

 which can be adjusted to form a circle or serpentine figure. It has 

 no bell and there are pairs of triangular rings at the large end and 

 at each joint. These rings are hollow and inclose loose pebbles. 

 The outside is painted with flowers, etc., in colors on a brown ground. 



