Tambourine
2 of the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Tambourine. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
or TAMBOURIN, an ancient pulsatile musical instrument of the drum class, popular among all European people, but particularly those of the S. The Biscayan and Italian peasantry employ it on every festal occasion. It is formed of a hoop of wood, sometimes of metal, over which is stretched a piece of parchment or skin; the sides of the hoop are pierced with holes, in which are inserted pieces of metal in pairs, called jingles. Small bells are sometimes fastened on to the outer edge of the hoop. It is sounded by being struck with the knuckles, or by drawing the fingers or thumb over the skin, which produces what is called "the roll," a peculiar drone. Also a stage dance formerly popular in France. It was of a lively measure, and accompanied with a pedal bass in imitation of "the roll." TAMBOUR WORK (French, tambour, a drum), a species of embroidery on muslin or other thin material, worked on circular frames which resemble drum heads. The practice of tambouring is rapidly being replaced by pattern weaving. See EMBROIDERY.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
a musical instrument belonging to the class known as percussion instruments. The tambourine is made by stretching a single sheet of parchment over one end of a broad hoop to which small bells or metal jingles are attached. Thus the instrument resembles one end of a drum. It is played by shaking, by drawing the finger across the parchment, or by striking it with the ends of the fingers, knuckles, elbow, or even knee. "Shaking a tambourine set round with tinkling bells and thumping it on its parchment head," says Hawthorne. The tambourine is supposed to be of oriental origin. It is a favorite instrument with the peasantry of Italy and of Spain. It is played usually as an accompaniment of dancing.
What Has Changed in the Last Century
The instrument Collier's described in 1921 a hoop of wood or metal, a stretched parchment head, jingles set in pairs into the frame is still built to exactly that plan, and the playing methods listed in both accounts (shaking, striking with knuckles or knee, and the thumb-drawn "roll") are the ones taught today. What has moved is the material and the setting: heads are now usually plastic (Mylar) rather than skin, headless jingle rings are common, and cheap mass-produced tambourines are mounted on drum kits and hi-hat stands. Aiton's 1910 note that it is "a favorite instrument with the peasantry of Italy and of Spain" no longer covers its main modern life, which is in gospel, soul and rock Bob Dylan's "Mr. Tambourine Man" of 1965 did more for its fame than any tarantella. The claim of "oriental origin" has held up: frame drums with jingles appear in ancient Near Eastern and Egyptian art, and the biblical timbrel is generally taken to be an ancestor.
Written for this edition, 2026.