# Please show me a picture of a fish horn ("musical" instrument) **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 30, 2010, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382 "2010-03-30T20:34:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/1 "2010-03-30T20:34:01Z")
I’ve seen lots of references to an old-fashioned woodwind-type instrument called a “fish horn”, which appears to have been a monotone noisemaker designed for volume and not for melody, as in [this story](http://www.aesopfables.com/cgi/aesop1.cgi?ab&TheManandtheFish-horn): > [@](#): > > A truthful man, finding a musical instrument in the road, asked the name of it, and was told that it was a fish-horn. The next time he went fishing he set his nets and blew the fish-horn all day to charm the fish into them; but at nightfall there were not only no fish in his nets, but none along that part of the coast. The traditional fish horn allegedly looks like a shorter version of the noisemaker called the [vuvuzela](http://www.vuvuzelas.com/index01.html). But I cannot for the life of me find a picture of the fish horn itself. I did do a board search and came up with a post where [**August West** describes a battery-powered toy called a fish horn](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=8528331&highlight=%22fish+horn%22#post8528331), but that’s clearly not the same thing. So I appeal to the Dope: Show me a picture of an actual fish horn! (And for all you merry pranksters out there, yes, I’ve already seen the pictures of fishes with horn-like protuberances that show up when you google “fish horn”, so ha ha very funny, but no thanks.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 10:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/2 "2010-03-30T22:24:26Z")
If the fish horn is in fact like a vuvuzela, it’s not monotone, and is in fact a sort of bugle. You’re pretty limited in what you can play, but you can still manage Taps, Reveille, and almost all of Amazing Grace, as well as anything else composed for bugle. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2010, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/3 "2010-03-30T22:48:00Z")
Cool, thank you! But no picture, huh? ---
**Author:** ![radarsmom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@radarsmom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/radarsmom)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2012, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/4 "2012-04-06T20:49:16Z")
Hi I have a pricture of a fish horn but can’t seen to upload it to this site. It was given to a friend as a housewarming present. The top 3 inches is wooden and pulls off (like a trumpet mouthpiece) under this is a metal reed, and below that the horn flares out slightly and is of what appears to be galvanized metal. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2012, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/5 "2012-04-06T20:56:10Z")
> [@radarsmom](#): > > Hi I have a pricture of a fish horn but can’t seen to upload it to this site. It was given to a friend as a housewarming present. The top 3 inches is wooden and pulls off (like a trumpet mouthpiece) under this is a metal reed, and below that the horn flares out slightly and is of what appears to be galvanized metal. Why thank you, **radarsmom**! If you ever do upload it somewhere, I’ll be interested to see it. Still no findy on the interwebs. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [April 6, 2012, 10:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/6 "2012-04-06T22:54:40Z")
> [@radarsmom](#): > > Hi I have a pricture of a fish horn but can’t seen to upload it to this site. It was given to a friend as a housewarming present. The top 3 inches is wooden and pulls off (like a trumpet mouthpiece) under this is a metal reed, and below that the horn flares out slightly and is of what appears to be galvanized metal. Yes, you cannot upload images to this site. What you need to do is upload it to some other image hosting site (there are lots of free ones - [Picpaste](http://picpaste.com/) is quick and easy to use for temporary postings) and then post a link here. If it has a reed, it is a different sort of thing from a vuvuzela or a bugle. ---
**Author:** ![BrianBen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@BrianBen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrianBen)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/7 "2017-02-05T13:12:45Z")
Kimstu, In the 1960’s in the Northern suburbs of Cape Town, South Africna fish mongers plying their trade from horse and cart used to blow a fish horn to attract the attention of the suburban house wives who wanted to buy fresh fish. In later years I blew the fish horn to signify the start of The Two Oceans 56km Marathon held each year in Cape Town. The traditional fish horn is made from metal sheet cut from a paraffin tin and rolled into a cone shape. The mouth piece is formed from copper pipe. I still have two of these original horns and can send you fotos. How best do I get these to you? ---
**Author:** ![quiltguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/e47774/32.png) [@quiltguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/quiltguy)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/8 "2017-02-05T13:35:26Z")
Is it a fish horn that is used in a There Stooges film, wherein they are selling fish from the back of a truck? Curly toots the horn, and does a little singsong and mentions a few kinds of fish. C’mon you Stooges fans, THINK! 😃 ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [February 5, 2017, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/9 "2017-02-05T13:59:25Z")
> [@BrianBen](#): > > The traditional fish horn is made from metal sheet cut from a paraffin tin and rolled into a cone shape. The mouth piece is formed from copper pipe. This is not \*exactly \*true - the \*traditional \*traditional Cape Town fish horn is a dried-out kelp stipe. [Like this](http://www.calvin.edu/~mkh2/za2009/svx_media/dsc_7077.jpg). Cite: my Uncle, who was a Kalk Bay snoek fisherman and sold catch using such a horn. ---
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2017, 12:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/10 "2017-02-06T00:06:59Z")
> [@radarsmom](#): > > Hi I have a pricture of a fish horn but can’t seen to upload it to this site. It was given to a friend as a housewarming present. The top 3 inches is wooden and pulls off (like a trumpet mouthpiece) under this is a metal reed, and below that the horn flares out slightly and is of what appears to be galvanized metal. That sounds vaguely like a metal version of a [shawm](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shawm). ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [February 6, 2017, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/please-show-me-a-picture-of-a-fish-horn-musical-instrument/534382/11 "2017-02-06T00:30:35Z")
Thank you, **BrianBen** and all! That is extremely helpful. In the five years since my original question, the internet seems to have become more enlightened about fish horns, and I see a (very bad) [photo of one here](https://www.etsy.com/listing/219697646/antique-primitive-tin-fish-monger-street?ref=market), for instance. [Here’s another](http://thumbs.ebaystatic.com/images/g/2KgAAOSwnbZYC5S5/s-l225.jpg). [And a better.](http://picclick.ca/Antique-Toy-Tin-Horn-351946418196.html) Thanks also for the info on what they were actually used for, besides just general noisemaking!