Phet Banam.wpntr2018-12-19T18:29:06+00:00This Phet Banam (left side) is an old and special instrument from the Santal region of Bihar in the northeast of India. It has the characteristic features of both lyre and zither. This instrument was made from one piece of wood. Two arms are stabilised to a piece of wood staying in a crosswise position at the bottom of the instrument. The strings stabilised at the bottom part of the instrument are streched up from the handle which is at the center of the instrument through upwards to the place where four tuners are. The structure of the Phet Banam resembles the ‘Crwth’, an archaic instrument associated particularly with Welsh music. When you look at the forefront of the instrument, it looks like a big plank of wood covered with reptile leather. There is a little metallic circle part at the top, and it is estimated that there was a mirror there before (now additional added). When you look at it from sidewise, it is possible to see the one piece of bark and its resonance board. It is estimated that the duty of the holes on the left is to strech up the strap. Because of that, it is also estimated that this instrument can be handled like a guitar. 