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Divan sāz

late 19th century
Not on view
The divan, or "audience hall," sāz is the largest type of bağlama, a Turkish relative of the tanbūr. On these lutes, six frontal and six lateral pegs secure six playable strings in double courses. Typically, the first strings furnish the melody while the others provide a drone. In Turkey, poet-musicians pluck the strings either with their fingers or a cherry bark plectrum and strike the soundboard with a finger to achieve percussive effects. This slightly atypical, highly decorative instrument features a body composed of seventeen ribs with ebony and holly marquetry, a pine soundboard, and a neck with inlays.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Divan sāz
  • Date: late 19th century
  • Geography: Turkey or Azerbaijan
  • Culture: Turkish or Azerbaijan
  • Medium: Ebony, holly, pine, various woods, mother-of-pearl, bone, sheep gut, wire
  • Dimensions: 46 1/16 × 8 1/4 × 9 1/16 in. (117 × 21 × 23 cm)
  • Classification: Chordophone-Lute-plucked-fretted
  • Credit Line: Gift of Miss Alice Getty, 1946
  • Object Number: 46.34.69
  • Curatorial Department: Musical Instruments

More Artwork

More Artwork
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Qānūn, Wood; parchment; gut strings; mother-of-pearl, ivory, bone, ebony inlay; shells; gold foil; metal; brass, Turkish
Qānūn
Turkish
19th century
Ūd, Manol (Emmanuel Venios) Greek, active Turkey, Spruce, mulberry, various woods, mother-of-pearl, mastic, Turkish
Ūd
Manol (Emmanuel Venios)
1916
Sitar, Murari Adhikari Indian, Teak, ebony, metal, bone, various materials, Indian
Sitar
Murari Adhikari
1997
Hawking Drum
Indian
late 18th–early 19th century
Sō Sām Sāi, Coconut, skin, ivory, mother-of-pearl, Thai
Sō Sām Sāi
Thai
19th century

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