Production
-
where
-
AsiaBhutan
Photographer: MS | Rights management: Ethnologisches Museum, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
Attribution - NonCommercial - ShareAlike 4.0 InternationalThis Ngül-gling pair was made from fire-gilded copper. It has seven tone holes at the front and features elaborate decorations on the pipe support and funnel. There are also ornate bands of gilded metal between the tone holes and a heavy metal chain. Both instruments are fitted with original mouthpieces. These are obviously insect cocoons, which also fulfil this function on the Nepalese-Chinese border. The pair of instruments is kept in two specially made woven bast cases. It belonged to a Bhutanese lama in Thimphu, whose nephew sold the instruments to the collector.