IDNO

P.52874.RDG

Description

Documentary photograph of a Likembe (idiophone or thumb piano) from the Ngombe River region. It is constructed of nine iron lamellae fastened by wire across to metal rods to wooden board, pierced with one sound hole. The back is the shell of a tortoise. A label reading “Musical Instrument. Ngombe River (Ligbeme). Central Africa. ?Thiker ?Kemrod Smith, 1908.” is adhered to the body of instrument.

Object on display.

Physical Condition: Print stained with ink.

Place

C Africa; ?Democratic Republic of the Congo; ?Republic of the Congo; United Kingdom; Ngombe River; Cambridge

Cultural Affliation

Named Person

Photographer

None

Collector / Expedition

Ridgeway, William

Date

circa 1908

Collection Name

Ridgeway Collection

Source

Format

Print Black & White

Primary Documentation

Other Information

P.52874.RDG to P.52884.RDG came from envelope now numbered C236/2/ which was found inside envelope C236/. The latter
came from wooden drawer I.

The images are of various musical instruments which may have been used by Ridgeway for illustrating his texts.

Bibliographical Reference: Figured in Ridgeway’s article ‘The Origin of the Guitar and Fiddle’ in Man, Vol. 8, 1908, Plate B, Fig. 4. Text provided for Fig. 4: “Exactly the same instrument as that of Hermes is at this moment in use amongst some of the tribes on the Congo. It is formed of the back of a tortoise with a piece of skin stretched tightly over it, the whole acting as a resonator to the notes fastened across it* as is the way in the common Kaffir organ. (*This specimen is in the Cambridge Anthropological Museum, as is also PL. B., Fig. 3.” pp. 18-19. [JD 12/10/2006]

This catalogue record has been updated with the support of the Getty Grant Program Two. [Jocelyne Dudding 16/10/2006]