Peru
Inca

Malea Ringens Conch, wax
ca. 1300-1500 CE
Length: 7.5 in
Aerophones – Wind Instruments Proper – Lip Vibrated

This pre-Columbian end-blown conch horn is attributed to the Inca culture, circa 1300-1500 CE, Central Peru.  It is a Malea Ringens (Swainson), still with traces of its original wax round the embouchure area, although the embouchure itself has broken away.  The remains of the wax coating round the embouchure is thought to have been to protect the lips while blowing. The end flange/rim has a drilled hole, possibly for a hanging rope.  Karl Gustav Izikowitz gives the main use for these conch horns was for signaling in war but says that conchs were used also for general purposes, including by travelers to show their peaceful intent and their distinction when passing strange villages.

According to my good friend and world renown ethnomusicologist Jeremy Montagu, “The word ‘conch’ means shell and derives from the Greek konche or konchos, and Sanskrit cankhua, and thus the commonly used term ‘conch-shell’ is a tautology.

The conch was collected in the 1930s by Dr. Lewis Hilton, Professor Emeritus at Washington University, and teacher/advisor of Aurelia Hartenberger at WU.

Reference: ‘The Conch Horn – Shell Trumpets of the World from Prehistory to Today.” Jeremy Montagu