Collection record · Objects & craft
Pipa
The collection record classifies this work as musical instrument. It is dated 1800s. Recorded culture or place: China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911).
Explore the object recordOBJECT RECORD
A closer look at the details.
- Museum title
- Pipa
- Date
- 1800s
- Culture / origin
- China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)
- Materials and technique
- Wood, ivory, bone, gut
- Dimensions
- Overall: 95.4 x 27.4 x 8 cm (37 9/16 x 10 13/16 x 3 1/8 in.)
- Artist / maker
- Not specified by the museum
- Museum
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Accession number
- 1918.344
FROM THE MUSEUM
In the museum’s words
The following description is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s original English record.
The term pipa, known since the 3rd century BC, describes the playing motion of the right hand: pi, “to play forward” (left), and pa, “to play backward” (right). A type of lute played with the fingers, it is used in opera and storytelling ensembles and has an impressive, virtuosic solo repertoire. Historic imagery, such as wall paintings, documents the spread of the pipa, along the Silk Road from western and central Asia to China. The bat finial here is a commonly used device on 19th-century Chinese lutes symbolizing good luck.
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Text and image sources
The Cleveland Museum of Art · The Charles G. King Jr. collection; Gift of Ralph King in memory of Charles G. King Jr. · CC0
The summary is based on public collection data. Refer to the museum’s latest record for the title, date and attribution.
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