Ear trumpet
Ear trumpets are tubular or funnel-shaped devices which collect sound waves and lead them into the ear. They serve as hearing aids, resulting in a strengthening of the sound energy impact to the eardrum and thus a better hearing for a deaf or hard-of-hearing individual.
Ear trumpets were made of sheet metal, silver, wood, snail shells or animal horns.
History
The use of ear trumpets for the partially deaf dates back to the 17th century. The earliest description of an ear trumpet was given by the French Jesuit priest and mathematician, Jean Leurechonin his work Recreations mathématiques (1634). Polymath Athanasius Kircher also described a similar device in 1650.
By the late 18th century, their use was becoming increasingly common. Collapsible conical ear trumpets were made by instrument makers on a one-off basis for specific clients. Well known models of the period included the Townsend Trumpet (made by the deaf educator John Townshend), the Reynolds Trumpet (specially built for painter Joshua Reynolds) and the Daubeney Trumpet.
