Mayuri Fiddle
Mayuri Fiddle
Originating from northern India, the Mayuri fiddle is a stringed instrument in the form of a peacock. The instrument is considered either a vina or a sitar, since sitars are derived from vinas, both categories are closely related (Weissmann 74). A vina is a stringed instrument with a long hollow gourd resonating chamber connected to a bridge design with strings that was introduced to India from Central Asian cultures around the 13th century. Peacocks in India were seen as sacred and worshipped so religiously that it actually became India’s national bird; hence, the killing of the animal was forbidden (Nair 19). The Mayuri fiddle came to exist through an exchange of stringed instruments along the Silk Road and was incorporated with the highly valued peacock, this instrument allowed for the Mayuri to be of great significance and was seen as a novelty item instead of a customary instrument (Clark 116). The Mayuri fiddle is an example of cultural hybridization between Central Asia and India due to the integration of Indian religion and musical instruments that were spreading throughout Eurasia.
The peacock is the national bird of India and is where the bird is thought to have originated. They were mainly in southern India, roaming along the outskirts of the Himalayas, and dwelling a mixture of open fields and jungles (Nair 4). According to the bible, peacocks were actually present in Athens around 450 BC when it was said to have reached the Holy Land in ancient times and remained in the island of Samos after (Nair 2). It was Alexander the great who helped facilitate the spread of peacocks by taking two hundred peacocks to Macedonia by land, and from there it spread to Greece, Rome, and eventually to Caesar’s Palace (Nair 37). However, the Bible indicates that King Solomon also brought the peacocks to the Holy Land through Judea. Peacocks were introduced to the Holy Land by the Phoenicians who traded with the Muziris, who in turn introduced it to the
Originating from northern India, the Mayuri fiddle is a stringed instrument in the form of a peacock. The instrument is considered either a vina or a sitar, since sitars are derived from vinas, both categories are closely related (Weissmann 74). A vina is a stringed instrument with a long hollow gourd resonating chamber connected to a bridge design with strings that was introduced to India from Central Asian cultures around the 13th century. Peacocks in India were seen as sacred and worshipped so religiously that it actually became India’s national bird; hence, the killing of the animal was forbidden (Nair 19). The Mayuri fiddle came to exist through an exchange of stringed instruments along the Silk Road and was incorporated with the highly valued peacock, this instrument allowed for the Mayuri to be of great significance and was seen as a novelty item instead of a customary instrument (Clark 116). The Mayuri fiddle is an example of cultural hybridization between Central Asia and India due to the integration of Indian religion and musical instruments that were spreading throughout Eurasia.
The peacock is the national bird of India and is where the bird is thought to have originated. They were mainly in southern India, roaming along the outskirts of the Himalayas, and dwelling a mixture of open fields and jungles (Nair 4). According to the bible, peacocks were actually present in Athens around 450 BC when it was said to have reached the Holy Land in ancient times and remained in the island of Samos after (Nair 2). It was Alexander the great who helped facilitate the spread of peacocks by taking two hundred peacocks to Macedonia by land, and from there it spread to Greece, Rome, and eventually to Caesar’s Palace (Nair 37). However, the Bible indicates that King Solomon also brought the peacocks to the Holy Land through Judea. Peacocks were introduced to the Holy Land by the Phoenicians who traded with the Muziris, who in turn introduced it to the
Cited: Clark, Mitchell. "Mayuri Fiddle." Sounds of the Silk Road: Musical Instruments of Asia. Boston, MA: MFA Publications, 2005. N. pag. Print. Frishmuth, Sarah S. "Stringed Instruments." Bulletin of Pennsylvania Museum 3.11 (1905): 45-48. Print. Lata, Swarn. Journey of the Sitar in Indian Classical Music: Origin, History, and Playing Styles. [S.l.]: Iuniverse Com, 2013. Print. Libin, Laurence. "Musical Instruments in the Metropolitan Museum." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 35.3 (1977): 2-48. Print. Miller, Terry E., and Jarernchai Chonpairot. "A History of Siamese Music Reconstructed from Western Documents." Crossroads: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies 8.2 (1994): 1-192. Print. Nair, Thankappan P. "The Peacock Cult in Asia." Asian Folklore Studies 33.2 (1974): 93-170. Print. Weissmann, Ann. "Hindu Musical Instruments." The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin 14.3 (1955): 68-75. Print. Behera, Subhakanta. "India 's Encounter with Thw Silk Road." Economic and Political Weekly 31.51 (2002): 5077-080. Print. Chang, Lulu Huang. "Cross Cultural Musical Processes and Results." Revista De Musicología 16.4 (1993): 1888-895. Print. Miner, Allyn. Sitar and Sarod in the 18th and 19th Centuries. Wilhelmshaven: F. Noetzel, 1993. Print.