salpinx

thumb|right|Musicians playing the salpinx (trumpet) and the hydraulis (water organ). Terracotta figurine made in Alexandria, 1st century BC thumb|Greek warrior blowing a salpinx A salpinx (; plural salpinges ; Greek σάλπιγξ) was a trumpet-like instrument of the ancient Greeks that was used as a tactical signal on the battle field, as well as to signal the beginnings of gatherings, or of races in sport.

==Construction== The salpinx consisted of a straight, narrow bronze tube with a mouthpiece of bone and a bell (also constructed of bronze) of variable shape and size; extant descriptions describe conical, bulb-like, and spherical structures. Each type of bell may have had a unique effect on the sound made by the instrument. The instrument has been depicted in some classical era vases as employing the use of a phorbeia: a leather strap typically worn on the face of aulos players to support their embouchure and allow for the projection of a strong sound. Because of this, there is some debate about whether there was a version of the salpinx that involved the use of a reed, however it is unlikely as the mouthpiece was made of a solid material (bone), and a cane reed would not have been able to withstand the vast amount of air pressure a lip reed can undergo to generate a sound resonant enough to be heard on the battlefield. The salpinx was akin to a shorter version of the approximately 1.5 meter long Roman tuba. As noted by Anthony Baines in Brass Instruments: Their History and Development, there is no existing fully attested Greek salpinx. However, Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts houses a type of salpinx attributed to the Hellenistic period or the Roman Imperial period, that was supposedly found in Olympia. It is unique in that it is constructed from thirteen sections of bone, connected using tenons and sockets (with bronze ferrules) rather than the long, bronze tube described elsewhere. This salpinx is over 1.57 m long dwarfing the common salpinx, which is estimated to have been around 0.8 – 1.20 m long.