Beautiful Small Cochiti Pueblo Painted Handheld Drum with Handle folk art pattern and the wood and finish

and the wood and finish remains in excellent condition

Punch and Judy has roots in 16th-century Italian commedia dell'arte

with a little wear showing in a few areas on the top of the box

with good wear and aging to the paint

If Brancusi were to carve a whimsy

Beautiful Small Cochiti Pueblo Painted Handheld Drum with Handle folk art pattern and the wood and finishI found a painted drum similar to this one a year or so ago and have kept a close eye out ever since as I think theyre stunningly beautiful. Though I found it in Vermont, I am certain it is Cochiti Pueblo, from the Taos area of New Mexico, and believe it dates to the earlyish 20th century. The body is wood (likely cottonwood I think), and the drum heads are stretched rawhide, pulled taut by sinew, which is still holding very tight, and it retains it