Citole

Citole (OFr.) [?Lat. *cithara or cistella, box], name of an important med. stringed instr., precursor of the cittern. The word occurs in Fr. literature from ca. 1200 on (Roman du renard), in Engl. literature from ca. 1310 (King Alisaundre). By 1292 there were 4 citoleurs i.e., makers of stringed instrs., in Paris. Tinctoris, ca. 1490, says that the citole was invented by the Italians, had a flat body, 4 brass or steel strings, was fretted, and that the strings were plucked with a quill. The…