Sound producing tools: form and localization of finger holes in the Maya terracotta musical instruments of the first millennium AD

The article discusses the structural features of the May musical instruments (1st millennium AD) made in the form of anthropomorphic, zoomorphic and anthropo-zoomorphic figurines. There are various types of holes that have a serious impact on the sound production of rattles and whistles, which are analyzed by a shape, quantity, size and location. In the framework of establishing the relationship between the structural features of the figurines and the sounds extracted during the play on whistles, elements of the method of experimental archaeology were used. Six copies of figures were made from the same mold with a different combination of sizes and shapes of holes. As a result of the work, it was possible to determine the approximate possible fingerings and variability of notes.