Name/Title
Pianophone, Fretless ZitherEntry/Object ID
2024.357.1Description
Patented in 1901 by Henry Charles Marx, the pianophone is in the category of fretless zithers. A zither is a flat sound box with numerous strings stretched across it. The instruments were sold by door to door salesmen and in the Sears & Roebuck mail order catalog, this pianophone had an original sale price of $8.50. The fretless zither was developed in 19th century Germany and was intended for the easy playing of chords to accompany singing. The idea was to make a musician out of anyone using a simplified instrument having a simplified learning curve. This and other types of zithers were incredibly popular in the early 1900s because people wanted to be able to play an instrument in their parlors. Families and friends entertained each other by playing musical instruments and singing, as there were no radios in home until the 1930s.
This model is missing its levers or hammers for changing chords, which may be because the hammers on this type of instrument were sometimes made of white lead which could create harmful lead powder over the course of playing. A solution at the time was to coat the hammers in epoxy glue to prevent wearing of the hammers while leaving the sound of the instrument unaffected.Acquisition
Accession
2024.357Source or Donor
unknownAcquisition Method
DonationLexicon
Nomenclature 4.0
Nomenclature Secondary Object Term
ZitherNomenclature Primary Object Term
Instrument, StringedNomenclature Sub-Class
Musical InstrumentsNomenclature Class
Musical T&ENomenclature Category
Category 06: Tools & Equipment for Communication