A bullroarer made from a flat peel off of a cottonwood tree. The narrow, top end of this artifact would have once displayed a hole, attached to a cord. These were swung around in the air to produce a soft mellow tone, summoning the Spirits, and used in ceremonies, and in some cases as childrens' toys. These are some of the earliest musical instruments.
This piece has been tested with improvised duct tape and string, and it still sings as it did 2,500 years ago.
From the very early Fremont culture, or a very late archaic desert people (Basket Maker II). Legally collected from the rear chamber of a cave on private land in the American Southwest. Only a handful of Great Basin bullroarers are known to exist.
length: 24 cm / 9 1/2 in
width: 8 cm / 3 in