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Experimental models of Aztec death whistles

Scientists Recreate Aztec Death Whistle’s Deathly Noise

Experts have recreated the terrifying sound of the Aztec Death Whistle - using a 3D printer. The whistle's design is based on the skull-shaped originals found in Mexico in the 1990s. Historically,...
Music in Luray Caverns. Source: KLugo / Adobe Stock.

Real Live Cave Music: Marvel at the World's Largest Instrument (Video)

Deep within Luray Caverns , Virginia, USA, an astonishing fusion of music and nature awaits: the Great Stalacpipe Organ. This extraordinary instrument defies expectations, utilizing delicate...
Traditional Burundian drummers perform at a public event in Burundi's capital, Bujumbura (Andreas31 / CC by SA 3.0)

Burundi Drums Beat the Ancient Memories of Unity (Video)

The tradition of Burundi drums holds a profound cultural significance that stretches back through the ages. These remarkable instruments, known as "Goma," have been an integral part of the country's...
The cow’s head on the Silver Lyre. Source: Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin / CC BY-SA 4.0)

Bask in the Beauty and Melody of the Ancient Mesopotamian Lyres of Ur

It is unknown which culture was the first to create music, but a set of beautiful Sumerian instruments from the city of Ur provide us with some insight into the world of ancient music. Over 4,000...
Divje Babe flute (Peter Milosevic / CC by SA 4.0)

Ancient Harmonies: Neanderthal's 60,000-Year-Old Flute (Video)

In 1995, archaeologist Ivan Turk made a groundbreaking discovery in the Divje Babe cave located in Slovenia. Among the remnants of a Neanderthal fire pit, as well as stone and bone tools, Turk...
The artifacts are believed to have been used as deer antler instruments. Source: F. Z. Campos / Antiquity

Ancient Deer Antler Instruments Discovered in Vietnam After 3,000 Years

Our prehistoric ancestors were very busy people, but they must have known how to chill in between chores, to relax and recharge. It’s well known to science that our cave dwelling forebears gorged on...
Striking the Right Note - Rare Bone Flute Unearthed in Kent

Striking the Right Note - Rare Bone Flute Unearthed in Kent

A pre-development dig by Cotswold Archeology at Herne Bay in Kent, England, has uncovered evidence of settlement from the Bronze Age to the Roman period and again in the medieval period. One of the...
A man playing a fantastic pig organ, or piganino, composed of screaming pigs. Source: British Museum / CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Louis XI Enjoyed an Abominable Orchestra of Squealing Pigs - the Piganino

Believe it or not, but it appears that the ruthless 15th century King Louis XI of France, nicknamed the Spider King or l'universelle araignée , took pleasure in the torture of animals. One particular...
The drum has been used since ancient times for rituals and communication. Source: zolotareva_elina / Adobe Stock.

Primeval Communication and the Beat of the Drum

Human beings need complex communication, no matter if it's through speech or music . The invention of drums has become an essential factor in all musical forms of artistic expression. It is through...
Detail of a hurdy gurdy

Hurdy Gurdy Man: Rock Star of the Medieval Music Scene

The hurdy gurdy is a musical instrument, or more precisely, a string instrument, that traces its origin to the Middle Ages of Europe. The hurdy gurdy was initially used to play sacred music, before...
https://www.ancient-origins.net/users/ed-whelan

Ancient Tattoo Tool Rewrites the History of Native American Ink

A Ph.D. student has made an astonishing discovery - the earliest known Native American tattoo artifact. It is estimated that it is 2000-years-old and came from the very important Basket-maker II...
The reconstructed Bull’s Lyre.

A Bull-Headed Lyre: Reconstructing the Sound and Style of Ancient Mesopotamia

A musician may have strummed its strings all the way back in the 3rd millennium BC. This means that the Bull’s Lyre, aka the Golden Lyre of Ur, is one of the oldest string instruments in the world...
An ancient mouth harp found in the Altai Republic of Russia.

This Musical Instrument Still Works 1,700 Years After a Hun Nomad Crafted it!

The nomadic musician looked fondly upon the latest of the completed instruments – a mouth harp carefully crafted by splintering the rib of a cow, or was it a horse? No matter, the sound it made when...
Gerard van Honthorst's 1623 painting ‘The Concert.’

Band Posters of the Renaissance: How Medieval Music Fans Showed off Their Taste

Tim Shephard / The Conversation Did you once put a poster of your favorite music artist on your bedroom wall? Are there a few faded gig T-shirts in your bottom drawer? Have you ever bought an LP or...
The Mysterious Lithophones of Vietnam: Descendants of the First Musical Instruments?

The Mysterious Lithophones of Vietnam: Descendants of the First Musical Instruments?

The word ‘lithophone’ is derived from two Greek words, ‘lithos’ and ‘phone’. The first can be translated as ‘stone’, whilst the second means ‘sound’. Therefore, a lithophone may be said to be a ‘...
Sweet Ancient Melodies of the Ney: One of the Oldest Musical Instruments Still in Use

Sweet Ancient Melodies of the Ney: One of the Oldest Musical Instruments Still in Use

For proof that the ney (also spelled nay) is one of the oldest musical instruments still in use, you need look no further than the great Sumerian city of Ur. Archeologists have found the delicate...
Carnyx from the recently discovered Tintignac group.

The Carnyx: Ancient Trumpet Leading Celtic Warriors to Battle

The carnyx is an ancient musical instrument that best-known to have been used by the Celts during the Iron Age. Between 300 BC and 200 AD, the carnyx was used in many parts of Europe. In the ancient...
Ancient Irish Musical History Found in Modern India

Ancient Irish Musical History Found in Modern India

An archaeologist studying musical horns from iron-age Ireland has found musical traditions, thought to be long dead, are alive and well in south India. The realization that modern Indian horns are...
The Mystical Pentatonic Scale and Ancient Instruments, Part I: Bone Flutes

The Mystical Pentatonic Scale and Ancient Instruments, Part I: Bone Flutes

One of the ancient technologies that is often overlooked is the creation of musical instruments. The purpose, development and in some cases the techniques used to develop music remains a mystery...
A traditional imzad instrument, made by local craftswomen and played only by women.

Reviving the Music of their Foremothers: A Traditional Tuareg Instrument for Women Makes a Comeback

A traditional stringed gourd instrument of the Tuareg people in Africa, played only by women because of the threat of a curse upon men who play it, is making a comeback. Only two women were known to...
“Tourist art” bullroarer decorated with a kangaroo design.

The Bullroarer: An Instrument That Whirls Through Cultures and Time

Music is believed to have been made by human beings since prehistoric times. Paleolithic tombs suggest that one of the earliest and longest-surviving artifacts that can be called a ‘musical...
Mayan Music: A painted image of a file of Mayan musicians playing rattle, ocarina, and trumpets while a theatrical scene goes on.

The Music of the Maya: Mysterious whistles Confound Experts

Music has held a special role in human society for thousands of years. In ancient China, for instance, sets of bronze bells were played for entertainment and ritual purposes at court. The...
600-year-old astronomical sketch

600-year-old astronomical sketch brought to life in fully functional model

A 600-year-old astronomical document is now moving into the modern era, with a symposium at the Whipple Museum titled ‘The Equatorie of the Planetis: Manuscript, Models, and Digitisation’ on 28 th...