The history of the guitar

Babylonian, and Egyptian civilisations. Around 2500-2000 BC more advanced harps, such as the beautifully carved 11-stringed instrument found in the tomb of Queen Shub-Ad in ancient Mesopotamia, now modern day Iraq, started to appear. B The tanbur1 probably developed from the bowl harp. It was different from the bowl harp in that its neck was straightened out to allow the strings to be pressed down to create more notes. Tomb paintings and stone carvings in Egypt indicate that harps and tanburs – plus flutes and percussion instruments – were being played together 3,500-4,000 years ago. Archaeologists have also found many similar relics amongst the ruins of the ancient Mesopotamian civilisation. Many of these instruments have survived into modern times in almost unchanged form, for example folk instruments of the region such as the Turkish saz and Afghan panchtar.