Jew’s Harps of Bone, Wood and Metal: How to Understand Construction, Classification and Chronology

R. Eichmann, J. Fang og L.-C. Koch (red.) Studien zur Musikarchäologie X. Leidorf, Rahden/Westf.: 63–73 (2016)

In the classification of musical instruments, the place of the jew’s harp has for a long time been disputed. This is a complex, diverse and anomalous musical instrument, technologically and culturally. The variety of shapes and materials within its original distribution area, Eurasia, raises questions about the nature and early history of the jew’s harp. How can we understand the connection between the various forms, and their chronological significance? How do earlier theories match modern archaeological research? These questions concern both organology and archaeology.