Cymbala

Cymbala (pl. of cymbalum) [Gk. *kymbalon], 1. cymbals of late Roman culture. The word itself is a Vulgate Latinization of the Gk. kymbala, used in the Septuagint to translate the Heb. word *selslīm. Cassiodore and Isidore use it in this sense. The Roman cymbals were metal plates with concave centers and turned rims. During the Carolingian period they are illustrated attached to forked sticks (see: crotal); sometime before 1000 A.C. the meaning of the word changed to denote: 2. set of tuned…