What were the characteristics of an instrument called the “Afrasiab lute” in Sogd?‌‌

A lot of archaeological material comes from this area, such as smaller terracotta tems, toreutics, and murals depicting various percussion, string and horn instruments. The technical perfection and complexity of Sogdian instruments indicates that they belonged to an ancient, highly-developed urban civilization.

The so-called “Sogdian” or “Afrasiab” lute was wide-spread in Sogd. This lute-like instrument belongs to the class of “short-neck lutes” and has several typical organological features, including a large rounded body with a short neck, and a backwards-bending head with two to five string pegs, depending on the period and territory. According to researchers, the classic four-string instrument of the Sogdians is the string plucked barbat, or the prototype of the future Arabic Muslim ‘ud. In the golden age of Muslim culture (11th–12th centuries) this instrument had its own name – the barbat-i Sugdi (Sodgian barbat).

You can learn more about the topic in the book-album "The Musical Legacy of Uzbekistan in Collections of the Russian Federation" (Volume VI) from the series "Cultural legacy of Uzbekistan in the world collections". 

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