Bow

Perhaps one of the earliest musical instruments used by man, the bow produces sound when the string is plucked. Different tones are achieved by holding the string in a different place and thus changing the length of the string that remains to vibrate.

The one pictured is from Tanzania but this basic instrument is common to music around the world. As they became more sophisticated, gourds or other vessels were attached as resonators. Over time, the bows also became more ornate with elaborate carvings on the resonators and bows, especially in the Moluccas Islands, India and Thailand

Compound bows were developed (and look like the predecessors of early lutes) when multiple bows were attached to a single resonator and each string was tightened to a different pitch.