The akonting is the traditional folk lute of the Jola, a West African people found in Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea-Bissau. With its skin-headed gourd body, two long melody strings and one short drone string, it is thought to be an important forerunner of the American 5-string banjo. This modern version features a round neck of Jamaican mahogany; a 10-1/2" diameter gourd with skin head, wooden bridge, and sound hole; and three strings with handmade tuning pegs.