The only earthen musical instrument is a kind of ocarina called
Xun. It can produce sound with a tamber similar to that of human voice, and is suitable for performing some lamenting aria. People in ancient times used the instrument to imitate birds' sound and ensnare them.
The oldestXunthat has been discovered in China up to now was made about six to seven thousands years ago. For instance, a conicalXunwas discovered in the Hemudu of the Hangzhou Bay in Zhejiang Province (eastern China), theXunwithout holes and the one-holeXunwere found in the Yangshao Culture site in Banpo Village in Xi'an (western China) andXunwas also discovered in Wanrong County of Shanxi Province (northern China), Yumen Huoshao Gou of Gansu Province (northwestern China) and Huixian County in Henan Province (central China).
There's a legend aboutXun. Long time ago, there was a young fellow who liked playingXunvery much. A beautiful lady named Huanghe heard his music and fell in love with him. But her father didn't like him because he was too poor. The young fellow missed the lady so much that he died of illness. His heart turned into a red diamond after his death. A craftsman passing by picked up the diamond and took it to the market for sale. The lady liked it very much and bought it. One day, the lady thought of the fellow when she was looking at the diamond and burst into tears. To her surprise, the heart broke into pieces when the tears fell upon it. So an old saying came into being -- Never give up until see Huanghe.
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