The Hardanger
Fiddle or Hardingfele dates back to 1651 with the Jaastad fiddle
now in the museum at the University of Bergen in Bergen, Norway.
The origin of the Hardingfele is unclear. It could have descended
from the family of baroque instruments found in Europe or possibly
from some early Scottish instruments. The early Hardanger fiddles,
although certainly related to modern Hardanger fiddles , were
really quite different. The early instruments were very narrow
in their body and the arching was extremely high. They have under
strings yet the number of the under strings varied. The patterns
of their decorations were more geometric.