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A boat shaped instrument, made, as the name suggests, to fit into a player's pocket when not being used. The small string length and body size require a different technique from that of the standard violin, often requiring the bottom of the instrument to rest against the player's inner elbow.
Kit

Instrument Information

Title

Kit (pochette)

Alternative Title

Pochette.

Accession Number

0332

Collection

MIMEd; Reid Collection

Date Information

Date Made

17th Century

Period

17th century; 27; 1610s; 1620s; 1630s; 1640s; 1650s; 1660s; 1670s; 1680s; 1690s; 1700s

Gallery Information

Gallery

Wolfson Gallery

Case

Drawer 22

Maker Information

No information recorded.

Made In

No information recorded.

Description

Technical Description

The soundboard is made of spruce; the back, neck, pegbox, fingerboard and tailpiece are made of ebony; and the finial and pegs are made of ivory. The soundboard is fine grained. The sound-holes are of a C shape, the inside of the C being straight, with a nick in the centre. The back, although produced from one piece, is carved to imitate 5 ribs - the outermost of which are almost parallel. The neck (86 mm long) is shaped as for a normal violin-type instrument, 12.2 - 14.3 mm thick. The fingerboard is a separate piece, 144 mm total length, 21.6 mm wide at the nut, and 27.9 mm wide at the bottom. There is an added piece to protect the soundboard from the tailpiece gut. The plug to hold the tailpiece is of ebony with an ivory decoration. The tailpiece is rounded at the bottom and has an inverse scalloped pattern at the top. The finial is shaped like a hat, made by turning an ivory button and planing off the sides. The ivory tuning pegs are heart-shaped.

Has remains of label indicating it was part of the Reid Collection.

Specific literature references: Engel 1872, Item 55; G.S. (1958) No. 67.
Illustration references: Hipkins and Gibb 1888, plate XXXIII; Campbell and Greated 1987, p. 208.

Previous ownership: Possibly the 'kit' purchased by Professor John Donaldson for the Music Classroom, University of Edinburgh, from Wood & Co, 12 Waterloo Place, 11 October 1856.

Provenance

Possibly the `kit' purchased by Professor John Donaldson for the Music Classroom, University of Edinburgh, from Wood & Co, 12 Waterloo Place, 11 October 1856.

Classification

Instrument

Kit/Violins/Strings/Musical Instrument ; Kit

Instrument Family

Strings

Hornbostel Sachs Classification

314.122-71 ; musical instrument