A baby rattle is a rattle produced specifically for the amusement of an infant. Rattles have been used for this purpose since antiquity, and experts in child development believe they help the infant improve hand eye coordination by stimulating their senses. [1] [2]
Baby rattles go back at least 2500 years. A rattle made of clay was found in Poland in a grave of a baby who was a member of the early Iron Age Lusatian culture, and was documented by archaeologists. [3] That hollow clay rattle was shaped like a pillow and was filled with little balls. It was found next to a tiny urn containing the cremated remains of the baby.[ citation needed ] Many similar examples of baby rattles have been recovered from Greco-Roman archaeological sites. Often, these rattles were in the shape of a pig or a boar, and sometimes a figure of a baby was riding the animal. Pigs were associated with the Greek goddess Demeter, who was invoked in rituals intended to protect babies in life and death. [4]
Greek philosopher Aristotle says in his Politics that young children should be given a rattle (particularly one designed by Archytas) to keep them quiet and "stop them from breaking things in the house". [5]
In Celtic cultures, it was common practice to produce toys out of rushes, much like how Brigid's cross are made in Irish culture, Morthwyl sinc (or 'Rygarug') are produced by the Welsh, they are woven by hand and teeth into a cocoon shaped encasing, inside there would be pebbles or possibly dried seeds to produce the rattling sound. [6] [7] [8]
In colonial America, artisans made elaborate gold and silver baby rattles incorporating bells and whistles and teething devices made of coral. [9] In 1777, in the early days of the American Revolution, John Hancock wrote to his wife, Dorothy Quincy Hancock saying, "I have sent everywhere to get a gold or silver rattle for the child, with a coral to send, but cannot get one." [10] Their daughter Lydia later died at ten months of age.
Edith Wharton, who was born during the American Civil War, received a similar elaborate silver baby rattle as an infant, which was engraved with her name and had a coral teething extension. [11]
Rattles can be made of wood, plastic or cloth. Many of the rattles are brightly colored, have animal or flower shapes, and typically make sounds when shaken. These sounds can range from the dull sounds typical of wooden rattles to the jingling or bell type sounds that metal rattles make.
Rattles provide a source of stimulation. Babies like the sounds they produce and follow the path of the rattle with their eyes, as well as giving them a sense of discovery as they try to grab and hold the rattle.
Many rattles have a dual function, doubling as teethers as babies grow. They have textured surfaces which are easy on the gums and provide the stimulation that babies need.
A lullaby, or a cradle song, is a soothing song or piece of music that is usually played for children. The purposes of lullabies vary. In some societies they are used to pass down cultural knowledge or tradition. In addition, lullabies are often used for the developing of communication skills, indication of emotional intent, maintenance of infants' undivided attention, modulation of infants' arousal, and regulation of behavior. Perhaps one of the most important uses of lullabies is as a sleep aid for infants. As a result, the music is often simple and repetitive. Lullabies can be found in many countries, and have existed since ancient times.
A sistrum is a musical instrument of the percussion family, a form of rattle, used most notably by the ancient Egyptians. It consists of a handle and a U-shaped metal frame, made of brass or bronze and ranging from 30–76 cm (12–30 in) in width. When shaken, the small rings or loops of thin metal on its movable crossbars produce a sound that can vary from a soft clank to a loud jangling. Its name in the ancient Egyptian language was sekhem (sḫm) or sesheshet (sššt) because of the sound it made when it rattled.The ancient Egyptian sistrum had important associations with religious and ritualistic practices concerning various musical and joyful deities.
Teething is the process by which an infant's first teeth appear by emerging through the gums, typically arriving in pairs. The mandibular central incisors are the first primary teeth to erupt, usually between 6 and 10 months of age and usually causes discomfort and pain to the infant. It can take several years for all 20 teeth to complete the tooth eruption. Though the process of teething is sometimes referred to as "cutting teeth", when teeth emerge through the gums they do not cut through the flesh. Instead, hormones are released within the body that cause some cells in the gums to die and separate, allowing the teeth to come through.
A pacifier is a rubber, plastic, or silicone nipple substitute given to an infant or toddler to suckle upon between feedings to quiet its distress by satisfying the need to suck when it does not need to eat. Pacifiers normally have three parts: an elongated teat, a handle, and a mouth shield which prevents the child from swallowing or choking on it.
A krater or crater was a large two-handled type of vase in Ancient Greek pottery and metalwork, mostly used for the mixing of wine with water.
Prehistoric music is a term in the history of music for all music produced in preliterate cultures (prehistory), beginning somewhere in very late geological history. Prehistoric music is followed by ancient music in different parts of the world, but still exists in isolated areas. However, it is more common to refer to the "prehistoric" music which still survives as folk, indigenous or traditional music. Prehistoric music is studied alongside other periods within music archaeology.
A rattle is a type of percussion instrument which produces a sound when shaken. Rattles are described in the Hornbostel–Sachs system as Shaken Idiophones or Rattles (112.1).
The Benty Grange helmet is an Anglo-Saxon boar-crested helmet from the seventh century AD. It was excavated by Thomas Bateman in 1848 from a tumulus at the Benty Grange farm in Monyash in western Derbyshire. The grave had probably been looted by the time of Bateman's excavation, but still contained other high-status objects suggestive of a richly furnished burial, such as the fragmentary remains of a hanging bowl. The helmet is displayed at Sheffield's Weston Park Museum, which purchased it from Bateman's estate in 1893.
Jaina Island is a pre-Columbian Maya archaeological site and artificial island in the present-day Mexican state of Campeche. A small limestone island on the Yucatán Peninsula's Gulf coast with only a tidal inlet separating it from the mainland, Jaina served as an elite Maya burial site, and is notable for the high number of fine ceramic figurines excavated there.
A damaru is a small two-headed drum, used in Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism. In Hinduism, the damaru is known as the instrument of the deity Shiva, associated with Tantric traditions. It is said to be created by Shiva to produce spiritual sounds by which the whole universe has been created and regulated. In Tibetan Buddhism, the damaru is used as an instrument in meditation practices.
The music of the ancient Mayan courts is described throughout native and Spanish 16th-century texts and is depicted in the art of the Classic Period. The Maya played instruments such as trumpets, flutes, whistles, and drums, and used music to accompany funerals, celebrations, and other rituals. Although no written music has survived, archaeologists have excavated musical instruments and painted and carved depictions of the ancient Maya that show how music was a complex element of societal and religious structure. Most of the music itself disappeared after the dissolution of the Maya courts following the Spanish Conquest. Some Mayan music has prevailed, however, and has been fused with Spanish influences.
Leibethra or Libethra, in the modern pronunciation Leivithra was an ancient Macedonian city at the foot of Mount Olympus, near the present settlement of Skotina. Archaeologists have discovered tombs there from the late Bronze Age containing rich burial objects. Leivithra played a remarkable role in the history of Pieria.
The Archaeological Museum of Dion is a museum in Dion in the Pieria regional unit of Central Macedonia, Greece.
The Pisgah phase is an archaeological phase of the South Appalachian Mississippian culture in Southeast North America. It is associated with the Appalachian Summit area of southeastern Tennessee, Western North Carolina, and northwestern South Carolina in what is now the United States.
The Banc Tynddol sun-disc is a small, decorated, gold ornament discovered at Cwmystwyth, Ceredigion, Wales. It most likely was part of a funerary garment and is dated to 2450-2150 BCE, which makes it the earliest gold artifact found in Wales. It was discovered on 16 October 2002 by a team of archaeologists who were investigating the site of Roman and medieval lead smelting hearths below the Bronze Age copper mine on Copa Hill.
Tamil people have historically been connoisseurs of fine golden jewellery, which has a history predating the Sangam period in the Indian subcontinent. Ancient Tamil literature lists out the different types of jewellery worn by women historically from head to toe. Apart from gold, jewellery was also fashioned out of silver, copper and brass.
Jennifer Foster is an English scholar of prehistoric and medieval archaeology, who specializes in the study of artifacts, particularly metalwork.
Crepundia are groups of amulets, often strung onto chains in Classical antiquity. They are similar to charm bracelets and are archaeologically associated with children.
"Dinogad's Smock" or "Dinogad's Cloak" is an Old Welsh lullaby recounting the hunting prowess of the dead father of an infant named Dinogad, who is wrapped in a smock made of marten skins. This garment gives the poem its modern title.
Especially moving are the graves of children. Graves of the youngest children contained miniature vessels and clay rattles.
The boar-shaped rattle in the JHUAM collection resembles numerous other examples from the Hellenistic and Roman periods.
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