France
French, Belgium, Italy

Metal, paint, gold leaf
ca. 1810s – 1830’s
Height: 27 inches
Wind Instruments – Brasswinds – Serpents

Stamped on the band where head inserts into the tubing:  Crown stamped over a shield surrounded by a reef of vines, with markings inside the shield. This buccin appeared on the front cover of “Keynote Magazine,” August, 1980 issue.

The buccin was a popular military trombone-type instrument in France, Belgium, and Italy, between 1810s to 1845. Parades and outdoor civic festivals were an important part of the French cultural life following the French Revolution in 1789. Trombones with a bell terminating in a stylized zoomorphic serpent head, visually appealed to the crowds as the band members passed by. This buccin is missing the slide, which is often lost. The two heads retain their original hand-painted colors of vivid red, green, and gold leaf.

The French Romantic composer, Louis Hector Berlioz (1803-1869) scored for the buccin in the “Kyrie” and “Resurrexit” of his Messe solennelle of 1824. The International Trombone Association uses the buccin for its logo.