A little about the Hammered Dulcimer
A hammered dulcimer is a wooden box or trapezoid, arranged with pin blocks on the left and right, and set (or courses) of metal strings that cross bridges. Bigger hammered dulcimers have more courses and greater range. And they are usually played with hammers although sometimes plucked.
Hammered Dulcimers are known and played in much of the United States, Great Britton and parts of Europe. Other similar instruments are found wide spread around the world: the Hackbrett is found in Germany, Austria and Switzerland, The Cimbalom is found in Hungary, the Santur, Santoor or Santouri can be found Iran, Iraq, Greece and India and the Salterio is found in Spanish speaking countries and Italy. For a more exhaustive list please look at Wikipedia’s article: