Handmade sistrum composed of split tree limb and tin can

Source catalog description

This description refers to material held by Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Visual details below describe the original material.

Hand-made wooden sistrum with a single handle at bottom. The instrument is made from a tree limb that is split into a fork. Attached at the top is a smaller branch joining the forks. In the middle of the fork are two (2) rows of flattened bottle caps created with strung wire. The bottom row of rattles has five (5) caps and the top row of rattles has seven (7) caps. There is some flaking of the bark, and the bottle caps are rusting and have sticky accretions.

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