- Blog Post
- Collection
- Conservation
Stringing It All Together
During AAPI Heritage Month, the CMA is sharing collection artworks to recognize the diverse histories within these communities. Let’s take a look at Chinese and Japanese musical instruments that are currently in the process of conservation with the assistance of Elena Mars who is finishing her third year of graduate school, earning her masters degree in objects conservation from SUNY Buffalo State College.
As part of my graduate internship in the conservation department at the CMA, I am contributing to an ongoing project to rediscover the Charles G King Jr. collection of musical instruments. These instruments were gifted to the CMA in 1918 by Ralph King, the first vice president of the museum, in memory of his father, Charles. The original goal of this collection was to show the evolution of string instruments through time and around the world. The instruments originate from a number of countries including Cambodia, China, the Democratic Republic of Congo, England, France, India, Italy, Japan, Madagascar, Saudi Arabia, and Tibet.
Currently, I am reviewing a group of mostly Chinese and Japanese instruments, many of which have not been displayed before. As these instruments are brought to the conservation lab, my role is to examine and document their condition, and to clean them in preparation for photography in the collection online, and for possible display.
Most of the instruments are dusty from long years in storage. Though the CMA storerooms today boast filtered air and carefully controlled environments, these objects have been moved around quite a bit in their long lives. In the Japanese koto below, careful dusting made a striking difference, revealing fine marquetry and tortoise shell inlay.
Some of the instruments are damaged and require special handling. I worked with the CMA photography department to support the detached string holder and peg block of this Japanese lacquered biwa while capturing photos. We gently rested these elements on a support block to simulate the original appearance of the instrument.
Once the instruments are cleaned and photographed, I take detailed measurements and annotate the images. These records are an important part of properly documenting and caring for art and artifacts.
I also identify and label specific parts of the instruments, as I’ve done with this tanbur from the Islamic collection. Look for this instrument on view in the new Islamic gallery rotation, Art of the Islamic World in gallery 116 reopening today, May 21.
These images and measurements were shared with CMA curators and the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s emeritus curator of musical instruments, Ken Moore, to aid in their examination of the instruments. We then met virtually with Ken and CMA Director of Performing Arts, Tom Welsh, to “look” at the instruments together as much as we can while the pandemic hinders in-person visits. I also reached out to local experts like Roberta Muelheim, curator of vertebrate zoology at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, to help identify natural materials like the string holder on this Chinese pi-pa, which turned out to most likely be bone, rather than ivory.
These conversations have expanded our understanding of the King collection and helped curators determine which instruments are representative examples that should be exhibited. Discovering that this pi-pa and qin are both excellent examples of instruments from their regions was a welcome revelation.
I was curious about the sound of these instruments, so I went to YouTube to find some examples:
The koto is a traditional Japanese instrument, played on a flat surface.
The biwa is another example from Japan, and is played held upright.
The tanbur is a traditional instrument in both Iran and Turkey. The tanbur in this video differs from the one I worked on, in that it has holes in the sound board, which changes how the instrument projects sound.
The pi-pa is a traditional Chinese instrument. It differs from many other instruments in that it has frets on the body and the neck. The CMA’s pi-pa differs from the one in the video in the level of decoration, featuring foliate carved neck frets as well as decorative carved bone plates.
Finally, the qin in this video is quite similar to the one in the CMA collection. Similar to the koto, it is played on a surface rather than held. The mother of pearl disks along the side are used as markers for finger placement.
New photography of the instruments in the Charles G. King collection will soon be added to the CMA’s collection online. I’m also planning to undertake conservation treatment of the pi-pa and qin this summer; look for them on view in the galleries of Chinese art this fall!
This is the third installation of a four-part series celebrating AAPI Heritage Month, during which the CMA is sharing AAPI voices and collection artworks and recognizing the diverse histories within these communities. Follow the CMA on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for more on AAPI Heritage Month.