Vietnam
Vietnamese

Bamboo, wood, fiber, abalone, paint
Mid 20th century
Length: 11.2 in; Width: 5.8 in; Depth: 1.25 in
Idiophones – Struck Idiophones – Clappers

The sanh sua is a wooden clapper (idiophone) from Vietnam. It is made of two bamboo handles bound together with fiber and inserted into a wooden handle at one end.  Attached to the bamboo handles at the opposite end are two almond-shaped wooden tongs painted black and inlaid with abalone.  By gently squeezing the handles in different places with different pressure and rhythm a variety of sounds are created.  The abalone shows a cricket on one side and the opposite side shows a frog.  It is suggested that this instrument (sometimes played in pairs) imitates the sound of a frog or cricket and is used for entertainment and to accompany storytelling.