klong inthaperih (กลองอินทเภรี)

Thai. ‘Indra's drum’. Term used for a large barrel-shaped kind of war drum, which was beaten when troops in the past went into battle, in order to encourage the soldiers and in worship of Indra, the Vedic god of war. An example of this drum is found at the drum tower (ho klong) of Wat Phra Sri Chinarat in Pitsanulok, where it is erected adjacent to a statue of Indra (fig.). Whereas perih is a Pali term for ‘drum’, intha derives from Phra In or Phra Intra, i.e. Indra (fig.). Originally, this specific drum was known simply as inthaperih, because the words klong and perih, also spelled pairih (ไภรี) and pairin (ไภริน), both mean the same, i.e. ‘drum’. It seems the term klong was added to clarify the meaning of the word perih for those who are not familiar with the rather archaic term. The barrel-shaped form of this drum is reminiscent of that of the klong thad (fig.) and to a lesser extend also of the klong tuk (fig.). 回