Sumba Island, Indonesia
Sumbanese

Wood, hide, cloth
Early 20 century
Overall diameter: 20 in; Head diameter: 11.5 in; Width: 12.25 in;
Beater length: 9 in
Membranophones – Struck Membranophones

This large double-headed ceremonial drum called lamba,  is unique to the people of Sumba, an island in eastern Indonesia.  It is played for days during festival ceremonies such as funeral events.  Only one lamba is set up in the plaza and young men take turns beating out the dance rhythms.  The drum is made of two thick deer skin covered heads over a hollowed out chunk of log.  The side bindings of this  lamba consists of four rows of wooden wedges wrapped and slightly fanned to create a tire-like shape. The wedges are interlocking/overlapping and held in place with a netting of leather, tied to rings of bamboo that wrap around the drumheads. These wedges are used for tuning, by pushing in to tighten or pulling out to loosen the tension on the drumheads.  A section of leather cord is also tied to the bamboo rings and functions as a loop for hanging the drum from a wooden frame or tree limb.

This drum has its original beater made of black painted wood. The beater head is covered in dark brown fabric and the handle has a beveled profile. The drum is overall a dark brown shade, with slight texturing from animal fur left on the leather hide.

Resource: “Instruments and Songs of Sumba, Indonesia: A Preliminary Survey,” Monni Adams, University of Texas Press, jstor.org.