Rabāb

Algerian or Moroccan

Not on view

This type of rabāb is one of the most important instruments in traditional Arabic ensembles of Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. It made its way into Spain with the Moors and from about 1300 lent its name to the early European fiddle, the rebec, which was originally played with the rounded end on the lap just as the rabāb is played today. Short-necked, bowed lutes from Algeria are made with decorative pierced brass fingerboards while those from Morocco use wood to cover the hollowed neck.

Rabāb, wood, mother-of-pearl, gut, skin, bone, Algerian or Moroccan

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.