Inuit / Canada
Abraham Nostapoke Collection

Birch/Spruce, sinew, whalebone
ca. 19th century
Length: 15 in
Chordophones – Zither – Bowed 

The ‘tautirut’ (also known as the Inuit/Eskimo fiddle) is an indigenous trapezoidal bowed box zither native to the Inuit culture of Canada.  It is made of birch or spruce, and the two strings are made of loosely coarse twisted sinew.  A strip of whalebone serves as the string attachment at the bottom.  The bow is wooden and is strung with whalebone (instead of horsehair) for playing the strings.

This ‘tautirut’ was field collected by George Brown.  The provenance letter states that it was first collected by Abraham Nostapoke (b. 1900-1980).