Bandurria
1840 - 1860. (Made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The bandurría is mostly played in Spain and Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, such as Cuba, Peru and Colombia. It has six courses of double strings and was strummed or plucked with a pick. The bandurría is often strung with metal strings but this example was strung with gut, when it was acquired in 1882. It belonged to the eminent musicologist, Carl Engel (1818-1882), who lent it for display in the Museum in 1874.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | planed and joined rosewood back and sides; planed and joined pine soundboard, inlaid with thuya and mother of pearl; turned ivory feet; steel frets. |
| Brief description | Bandurria, rosewood back and sides, thuya pick-guard, Spanish, 1840-1860. |
| Physical description | "Heavily constructed body with back and sides of rosewood, with the shoulders carried upwards in two hollow, squared-off horns. The back is bent sharply backwards at the horns and at the lower end of the body, which is flat and provided with two ivory feet so that the instrument can stand unsupported. The thick bottom block is cut away centrally to allow for an inwardly sloped section of the lower part of the belly with twelve hitch-pins for the strings. The belly has three small open soundholes [surrounded by mother-of-pearl beeding], a thuya protector plate and a loose bridge. It has simple fan-barring on the underside. The neck has a raised finger board with fourteen steel frets. The wide fan-shaped head accommodates screw tuning actuated by twelve brass wheels, four along each side and four along the top. Six double courses, four of gut and the last two of overspun wire. An example of the elaborate bandurria models made during much of the nineteenth century, chiefly in Spain, though the type is not unknown in Portugal. Anthony Baines, Catalogue of Musical Instruments in the Victoria and Albert Museum - Part II: Non-keyboard instruments (London, 1998), pp. 41-42. |
| Dimensions |
|
| Object history | This instrument formed part of the collections of Carl Engel (1818-1882) and was purchased by this museum in 1882 for £2. It was mentioned as being lent for display at this museum in 1874 or even earlier (cf. Carl Engel: A Descriptive Catalogue of the Musical Instruments in the South Kensington Museum , (London, 1874), p. 334). |
| Production | A.Baines described this as 'Spanish or Portuguese'. |
| Summary | The bandurría is mostly played in Spain and Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, such as Cuba, Peru and Colombia. It has six courses of double strings and was strummed or plucked with a pick. The bandurría is often strung with metal strings but this example was strung with gut, when it was acquired in 1882. It belonged to the eminent musicologist, Carl Engel (1818-1882), who lent it for display in the Museum in 1874. |
| Bibliographic references |
|
| Collection | |
| Accession number | 227-1882 |
About this object record
Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.
Suggest feedback
| Record created | June 24, 2009 |
| Record URL |
Download as: JSON
