HANDBOOK 'OF THE COLLECTION OF MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS 69 



larger instrument (95558) has 10 pairs of jingles. These specimens 

 have each a round thumb hole in the shell. A tambourine from 

 Morocco (95771) has the shell made of two thicknesses of bent wood, 

 mortised for five pairs of jingles. The parchment head is gaily 

 painted with colored designs on a red ground. This has no thumb 

 hole. 



Continuing the series of tambourines with hoops of bent wood, we 

 note two interesting specimens from Egypt, 95167 being the more typi- 

 cal of the two. The hoop is mortised with 10 openings in 2 rows of 5 

 each, and in each opening is suspended a pair of jingles. The hoop 

 is inlaid with pearl, horn, and light-colored woods. One parchment 

 head was stretched across the hoop when wet and glued in place. 

 The other Egyptian tambourine (56192) is considerably larger. 

 The shell is painted red on the inside and thickly hung with wire 

 chains composed of three circular rings, hung from staples in the 

 wood. The rawhide head almost covers the outside of the shell, to 

 which it is glued. 



A curious instrument from Tiflis, Russia (72971), has the inside of 

 the shell painted red and the outside inlaid with bone, horn, and 

 light-colored woods. The inside is hung with 80 jingles pendant 

 from brass staples passing through brass escutcheons. The jingles 

 are brass rings, small bells, and coins or medals, seven rings alter- 

 nating with three bells or three coins, etc. The parchment head 

 is glued to the shell, its outer edge covered with a ribbon of green 

 parchment nailed with brass nails. A heavy tambourine came from 

 Barbados Island (94874). The hoop is of two thicknesses of bent 

 wood, lapped and nailed and mortised for three pairs of large jingles. 

 The structure is particularly heavy throughout the instrument. 



Two American tambourines are shown, and are of about the same 

 size (Nos. 55754 and 55755). 



Tambourines from Singapore and Calcutta have shells turned 

 from blocks of wood, 94912 resembling a shallow bowl without a 

 bottom. The head is nailed to the shell, which is hung with three 

 pairs of copper jingles. It was used at marriage feasts and festi- 

 vals. The tambourine from India (92728, pi. 24e) has only one 

 pair of jingles. The outside of the head is painted with bands of 

 black, yellow, and red with a green edge. According to Tagore, it 

 is a pastoral instrument used by the religious mendicants as an 

 accompaniment to their songs. 



The Chinese tambourines in the collection have a shell or hoop 

 made of sections of wood sawed and mortised to form a circle. The 

 shell of 54051 is made of five sections of wood sawed to form a 

 circle and bound with a narrow iron hoop. It has five rectangular 

 holes in the shell and a pair of tin jingles set in each hole. The 

 head is of pigskin, painted with flowers in colors surrounded with 

 2999—27 6 



