BanjoFive-string banjoA four-string banjo
Choose from a wide range of collectibles, including Chinese, Japanese, Asian collectibles and more at great prices.

Banjo

The banjo is a stringed instrument developed by enslaved Africans in the United States, adapted from several African instruments. The name banjo commonly is thought to be derived from the Kimbundu term mbanza. more...

Home
*Best Sellers
Advertising
Animals
Animation Art, Characters
Arcade, Jukeboxes & Pinball
Autographs
Banks, Registers & Vending
Barware
Bottles & Insulators
Breweriana, Beer
Casino
Clocks
Ansonia
Banjo
Cuckoo
Gilbert
New haven
Regulator
Seth thomas
Waterbury
Welch
Comics
Cultures, Ethnicities
Decorative Collectibles
Disneyana
Fantasy, Mythical & Magic
Furniture, Appliances & Fans
Historical Memorabilia
Holiday, Seasonal
Housewares & Kitchenware
Knives, Swords & Blades
Lamps, Lighting
Linens, Fabric & Textiles
Metalware
Militaria
Most Popular
Pens & Writing Instruments
Pez, Keychains, Promo...
Photographic Images
Pinbacks, Nodders,...
Postcards & Paper
Radio, Phonograph, TV, Phone
Religions, Spirituality
Rocks, Fossils, Minerals
Science Fiction
Science, Medical
Tobacciana
Tools, Hardware & Locks
Trading Cards
Transportation
Vanity, Perfume & Shaving
Vintage Sewing
Wholesale Lots

Some etymologists derive it from a dialectal pronunciation of "bandore", though recent research suggests that it may come from a Senegambian term for the bamboo stick used for the instrument's neck.

History

African Slaves in the American South and Appalachia fashioned the predecessor of the earliest banjos after instruments they had been familiar with in Africa, with some of the earliest instruments sometimes referred to now as "gourd banjos". One example would be an akonting. It is a spike folk lute played by the Jola tribe of Senegambia. Another similar instrument is the xalam of Senegal which dates back to ancient Egypt. The modern banjo is an invention by an American named Joel Sweeney.

Modern forms

The modern banjo comes in a variety of different forms, including four- (plectrum and tenor banjos) and five-string versions. A six-string version, tuned and played similar to a guitar, is gaining popularity. In almost all of its forms the banjo's playing is characterised by a fast strumming or arpeggiated right hand, although there are many different playing styles.

Usage

Today, the banjo commonly is associated with country and bluegrass music. Historically, however, the banjo occupied a central place in African American traditional music, as well as in the minstrel shows of the 19th century. In fact, African Americans exerted a strong, early influence on the development of both country and bluegrass through the introduction of banjo, and as well through the innovation of musical techniques in the playing of both the banjo and fiddle. Recently, the banjo has enjoyed inclusion in a wide variety of musical genres, including pop crossover music.

Five-string banjo

The origins of the five-string banjo is credited to Joel Walker Sweeney, an American minstrel performer from Appomattox Court House, Virginia. Sweeney wanted an instrument similar to the banjar played by African Americans in the American South, but at the same time, he wanted to implement some new ideas. He worked with a New York drum maker to replace the banjar's skin-covered gourd with the modern open-backed drum-like pot, and added another string to give the instrument more range or a drone. This new banjo came to be tuned gCGBD; somewhat higher than the eAEG#B tuning of the banjar.

Read more at Wikipedia.org


Early weight driven banjo clock w/ walnut case runs $493.00 Waterbury Gilt Front Weight Driven Banjo Clock $1,650.00
Sessions Electric Banjo Wall Clock W/Eagle On Top $19.99 Antique Waltham Banjo Wall Clock ,8 Day Wind-Up ***Nr $49.99
Ingraham Banjo Clock Movement Only $24.99 antique New Haven 12 day Banjo clock wall Nr mahogany $9.99
Vintage Gilbert No 51 T Banjo Clock Burroughs Co $3.99 E. Currier Salem, Ma Presentation Banjo $5,000.00
Vintage Seth Thomas Banjo Clock ship silhouette 4 jewel $9.99 Large Banjo Clock, Time & Strike- No Reserve $9.99
Antique Sessions Banjo Clock $100.00 Seth Thomas Banjo Clock $40.00
Vintage Sessions Mahogany 8 Day Banjo Clock Works $29.99 Vintage Seth Thomas Homestead Banjo Wall Clock Wind-up $29.99
Brass Bezel For Weight Banjo $12.99 Vintage 30" Key Wind Mahogany Banjo Style Wall Clock Nr $9.99
Vintage Seth Thomas Banjo Clock Key Wind & Works!!!!!!! $26.99 Vintage Seth Thomas Clock #2 Banjo Nr $49.99
Vintage Gilbert 1807 Banjo Clock / Overwound $9.99 Beautiful Presentation Banjo Wall Clock / Westminster $119.00
Antique New Haven Banjo Style Wall Clock Whitney 8 Day $26.51 New Cast Iron Black American Banjo-Guitar Clock 16"Tall $18.99
Sessions Electric Banjo Clock 1936 $39.99 Old New Haven Banjo Clock To Restore $76.00
American Origin banjo Style Carved Wall Clock Chime New $109.50 Waltham Banjo 3 1/2 Inch Pendulum $74.95
Signed Waltham Banjo Movement $249.95 090326: Hamilton Sangamo Brass Mahogany Banjo Clock $35.00
090325: Seth Thomas Banjo Inlaid Clock W 6", L 19" $50.00 090324: Sessions Banjo Clock, W 8", L 22", D 2" $50.00
Seth Thomas "No.8" Banjo Clock - Project - 1929 $79.95 204: American handpainted Chelsea banjo clock $125.00
Ant Maritime Banjo Clock-Sessions-Reverse Painted Scene $129.99 Old Willard Mahogany Ship Battle Banjo Key Wind Clock $102.50
Antique Weight Banjo Clock Movement Howard Seth Thomas? $63.99 Antique Early 20thC 40in Ingraham Banjo Clock $87.89
Lux Novelty Clock - Banjo $49.00
Click to see more Banjo items
Prices current as of last update, 09/07/08 5:18pm.


Home Contact eBay