Mongolia
Mongol people

Birch, spruce, horsehair, pigment
Mid 20th century
Length: 29.75 in, Width: 8.75 in, Depth: 2.25 in
Chordophones – Lutes

The term Morin Khuur means fiddle with a horsehead. It is a traditional Mongolian bowed stringed instrument.  The Morin Khuur consists of a trapezoid wooden-framed sound box to which two strings are attached. It is held nearly upright with the sound box in the musician’s lap or between the musician’s legs. The strings and bow are both made of Mongolian horsetail hair.

The Morin Khuur is one of the most important musical instruments of the Mongol people and is one of the Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity, identified by UNESCO.  Historically, the origin of the Morin Khuur has been passed down through popular folklore legends sharing about the great relationships between humans and horses. These early long neck fiddles were first made with a resonator in the shape of a bucket that had covers made of camel, goat, or sheepskins.  Today, this kind of bucket-shaped Morin Khuur is still used in Western Mongolia.  Throughout the regions of Mongolia, Morin Khuurs vary in forms and shapes ranging from horses, humans, lions and crocodile’s heads on the instruments. 

A well-known Mongolian poet Tsedendorj Mishig celebrated the charm and power of horsehead fiddle and its player in a poem, writing:

“Only its two strings express
All the events of the world.”

This Morin Khuur has a green painted horsehead, known to the Mongol people as the color symbol of peace and fertility. Also, the green color is used as a symbol of the green horse of Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future.

Resource: https://www.mongolianz.com/post/2018/10/24/exotic-morin-khuur-the-horse-head-fiddle-and-the-legend-of-namjil-the-huhoo/#:~:text=The%20skin%20is%20soaked%20in%20curdled%20milk%20for,color%20is%20the%20symbol%20of%20peace%20and%20fertility.