Rare box for Tympanon or Dulcimer in lacquered wood with Arte Povera decoration. The outside is very worn, but very fresh inside.

Rare box for Tympanon or Dulcimer in lacquered wood with Arte Povera decoration. The outside is very worn, but very fresh inside.
Venetian work circa 1740.
W.: 77 cm H.: 15 cm D.: 35 cm
The Victoria & Albert Museum keeps a dulcimer in a similar box ( n°4:1&2-1869)
The tympanon is a musical instrument of the cithara family on a table, which, like the psaltery, is in the form of a trapezoidal box. A number of strings, sometimes joined together in various choirs, are stretched over the soundboard. The sound is produced by striking the strings with mallets.
The term "tympanon" is derived from the Greek verb for the action of striking from the top down, and by extension, on a vibrating string.
In France, this instrument became very popular in the mid-17th century, reaching its peak in the 18th century. Automatically translated by DeepL. To see the original version, click here.