2,000 yr old whistle or flute wall painting in Petra Jordan

[MTGuru]

an artisan unfamiliar with or indifferent to how a flute is played?

Sure, this is a well-known issue in medieval and later art as well. There are many representations of pipes and flutes (and various other instruments), but it's hard to draw conclusions about the instruments or playing techniques. The depictions are, in effect, just visual props, and artistic intent doesn't necessarily require accuracy.

In artworks where the visual composition places the player toward the right of the frame instead of the left, you're more likely to find the right-handed depiction. (And yes, there is a possible chicken-or-egg problem with this.)

[Daniel_Bingamon]

Then there are the portrayals from the right-handed folks that connect us left-handers to the children of Cain. The first person in scriptures to make and play musical instruments was Jubal (or Yuval in Hebrew) of Genesis 4:20 - mistakenly translated "Organ" in the KJV, the first two instruments were the Kinnor and Ugav. The Ugav was speculated to be an early flute probably made of reed.

[Beoracha]

The players depicted do appear to be posers rather than players. Sort of like movie poster art, a stylized version of the real thing. It's fun to see images of instruments that old. Interesting history. Too bad they didn't leave any video or audio behind.

It rarely pays to be a minority of any kind. I have to admit it does look a little weird sometimes to see someone do something left handed. We're all supposed to be the sons of Cain though. You won't see me casting the first stone.

[khl]

In December 2008 I was at the Bible Lands Museum in Jerusalem. There was a temporary exhibit of ancient musical instruments, depictions of people playing, etc. Here are a few pictures--all BCE, with the oldest being about 1,200 BCE.









And, of course, wherever you have whistles or flutes, one of these guys has to show up.

[hydromel89]

I wonder if the reason they appear left handed is that the image has been taken from another source and transposed by an artisan unfamiliar with or indifferent to how a flute is played?

Or maybe the picture has been flipped...

[hans]

I wonder if the reason they appear left handed is that the image has been taken from another source and transposed by an artisan unfamiliar with or indifferent to how a flute is played?

Or maybe the picture has been flipped...

Or they just played that way.
You still use both hands to play the flute.
What's the deal which hand is closer to the mouth?

[DrPhill]

...............
You still use both hands to play the flute.
What's the deal which hand is closer to the mouth?

Heretic Hans,
Next you will be claiming that it does not matter which end of the boiled egg is uppermost.....

[hans]

What's the deal which hand is closer to the mouth?
To answer that:

The cardinal rule of dining is to always use the right hand when eating or receiving food and never the left. The left hand is considered unclean. However, it is advisable to use the left hand if there is any cutlery for taking food from the dish onto your plate. In rare instances, the use of the left hand is acceptable only when eating onions and some other accompaniments. Moreover, in some communities, it is now acceptable for left-handed individuals to eat with their left hands. Normally the left hand is used for cleaning oneself.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etiquette_ ... Right_hand

This applies to other cultures as well I think. So I could speculate that the flute player in such cultures may prefer the right hand closer to the mouth, which makes him a left-handed/ flute-sticking-out-to-the-left player. The bottom end of the flute could also be associated with the ground (some neys and kavals are resting on the ground), so the left (regarded as unclean, and perhaps literally unclean) hand would be kept to that flute end.
<end of cultural speculation, hope it pleases all you lefties! >

[JTC111]

...and if Picasso painted a picture of a flute player, he'd be holding it with 3 hands and you wouldn't be sure if the mouthpiece was aimed at the player's lips, armpit, or anus.

What's being overlooked in this conversation is that painting and drawing, much like all other forms of communication, have evolved tremendously over time ...and that evolution wasn't about the art becoming more accurate. Most primitive works lack shadow, depth, and perspective. And I've seen very little, if any, primitive art that strived for accuracy. Left hand on top, right hand on top... I doubt that detail was important to the artist.

[Beoracha]

And, of course, wherever you have whistles or flutes, one of these guys has to show up.

That's one old bodhran player! Nice photos and rock carving. The two pipe approach looks popular. Maybe a little hypnotic harmonizing drone action, some strumming, and someone banging on something.

What is that guy in the middle playing? It looks like a sideways accordion.

[khl]

What is that guy in the middle playing? It looks like a sideways accordion.

The sign (not clearly posted on the picture) says they're harps that the others are playing.

[Beoracha]

Thanks for the reply. I suppose it's lying flat in the lap. Maybe like a dulcimer or psaltery or something. Interesting.

[MTGuru]

Nah, he's just a food vendor who wandered into the procession with a tray of breadsticks.

[hoopy mike]

The first person in scriptures to make and play musical instruments was Jubal (or Yuval in Hebrew) of Genesis 4:20 - mistakenly translated "Organ" in the KJV, the first two instruments were the Kinnor and Ugav. The Ugav was speculated to be an early flute probably made of reed.

And I thought that Adam and Eve were drummed out of the garden of Eden...

[Ted]

Left hand on the bottom does not equal left handedness in these old depictions. Right handers placing left hand on top is a modern convention and, as I have pointed out, some cultures today say the right hand on top is correct for right handed players of their instruments.
The double pipes in the Bible Lands Museum pictures are not playing flutes or whistles. These are the hallel (sp?), double reed pipes similar to the aulos.