Fretless banjo with baluster-back neck
Pre-Civil War banjos are extremely rare and as the instrument had not yet been standardized, each example is singular and differs from others. This early example is unusual in that it appears that the neck is recycled from a baluster from a flight of stairs.
At the time this banjo was made, the banjo was just becoming popular with White audiences. The banjo was invented by enslaved African in the Caribbean perhaps as early as the late seventeenth century. It remained an instrument used in black communities, both enslaved on plantations and among emancipated people in towns and cities. Then, in the mid-19th century, White musicians began to use the banjo and mimic Black musicians, creating a highly derogatory genre of music known as minstrelsy. This rare example could have been used by either Black or White musicians from the period.
At the time this banjo was made, the banjo was just becoming popular with White audiences. The banjo was invented by enslaved African in the Caribbean perhaps as early as the late seventeenth century. It remained an instrument used in black communities, both enslaved on plantations and among emancipated people in towns and cities. Then, in the mid-19th century, White musicians began to use the banjo and mimic Black musicians, creating a highly derogatory genre of music known as minstrelsy. This rare example could have been used by either Black or White musicians from the period.
Artwork Details
- Title: Fretless banjo with baluster-back neck
- Date: ca.1850
- Geography: United States
- Culture: American
- Medium: Various woods, metal hardware, bone knobs, calfskin head, calfgut strings
- Dimensions: 38 in. Length x 3 ½ in. Depth x 12 ½ in. Diameter
- Classification: Musical instruments
- Credit Line: Peter Szego, 2024
- Object Number: 2024.607.4a, b
- Curatorial Department: Musical Instruments
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