Bomba Drum

Description:

This wooden-cask drum was used to play bomba, one of the oldest forms of music in Puerto Rico. One end of the drum is covered in animal skin with a fur fringe. This is held in place by a wooden band that is tensioned with fiber ropes hooked on four wooden pegs driven into the sides. Bomba was created on the plantations of Puerto Rico by enslaved Africans and their descendants in the 1680s. Like the Cuban rumba, bomba must include dance in its performance, reflecting its west African musical origins. Bomba ensembles usually feature three differently pitched drums and a single maraca.

Date Made: ca 1954

Place Made: Puerto Rico: San Juan, San JuanLocation Where Used: Puerto Rico

General Subject Association: Music

Subject:

See more items in: Culture and the Arts: Musical Instruments, Music & Musical Instruments, Cultures & Communities, Artifact Walls exhibit, Many Voices, One Nation

Exhibition: Many Voices, One Nation

Exhibition Location: National Museum of American History

Credit Line: Gift of Rafael Cepeda Atiles

Data Source: National Museum of American History

Id Number: 1983.0686.01Accession Number: 1983.0686Catalog Number: 1983.0686.01

Object Name: drum

Physical Description: goatskin (hide material)iron (overall material)paint (overall material)wood (overall material)Measurements: overall: 26 cm x 26 cm x 6.5 cm; 10 1/4 in x 10 1/4 in x 2 9/16 in

Guid: http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ng49ca746a5-0033-704b-e053-15f76fa0b4fa

Record Id: nmah_681731

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