Artwork Page for Pipa

Details / Information for Pipa

Pipa

琵琶

1800s

China, Qing dynasty

(1644-1911)
Medium
Wood, ivory, bone, gut
Measurements
Overall: 95.4 x 27.4 x 8 cm (37 9/16 x 10 13/16 x 3 1/8 in.)
Weight: 1.52 kg
Credit Line
The Charles G. King Jr. collection; Gift of Ralph King in memory of Charles G. King Jr. 1918.344
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Did You Know?

The string holder is made of bone.

Description

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.
A dark brown, pear-shaped wooden instrument tapers into a slender neck decorated with intricately carved ivory panels. Below these, thin horizontal bars cross the body as frets. Four strings stretch from a light-colored bridge at the base to four lateral tuning pegs. A flared, decorative wood carving crowns the top. The polished surface reveals vertical graining, while the pale ivory accents stand out against the deep brown wood.

Pipa

1800s

China, Qing dynasty (1644-1911)

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