The Whistle still plays...
Zoomorphic Whistle in Terra Cotta.
The musical expression of Neolithic populations escapes, almost completely, the theories of archaeologists. There is nothing quite as fleeting as the sound of a musical instrument ; just as quickly as it is sounded and its notes are released through the air, for the listener, it disappears as if swallowed by time.
To find the intact remains of a musical instrument from these remote periods is as moving as it is priceless.
The terra cotta zoomorphic whistle discovered at the Hârsova tell belongs to the inspiring spirit of these discoveries. Just recently removed from the ground and cleaned, it sounds a whistle for the first time in 60 centuries.
Who played it ?
Was it a shepherd lost amidst the vast steppes passing the time or whistling for his dog ?
A hunter maybe, hidden in the shadows, whistling to attract an unsuspecting bird ?
Maybe a child, playful, awkwardly trying to reproduce the notes of a tune to dance by ?