Images(2)

Banjo

Dateca. 1960

Maker Frank Proffitt

OriginAmerica, North Carolina, Watauga County

MediumPoplar (?), butternut (?), fruitwood (?), animal skin

DimensionsOL: 33 1/2"; OW: 9 1/4"; Depth: 5"

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number2010.3000.1

DescriptionA banjo made by Frank Proffitt in the "mountain banjo" style, having four strings. The 6" x 7 1/2" oval skin head is tacked to a thin oval frame which is set into a 7/8" thick rim nailed to a round-backed resonator carved from solid wood with a 2 1/2" diameter hole in the back. A heavy neck is carved of poplar(?); the peg head slants back with four large wooden tuning pegs.
Inscribednone observed
Markingsnone observed
ProvenanceThe banjo was commissioned by Alan Lomax to represent an eighteenth-century African American banjar for the 1960 film "Music of Williamsburg." The instrument's maker, Frank Proffitt, was a folk musician, and the banjo followed the style of design he often used for banjos. The instrument represents a Frank Proffitt banjo and is not considered a reproduction.