Guide to Early Instruments

The Tudor period in England was a time of revolutionary change. The Church, which was considered a cornerstone of civilisation, was in turmoil. The world turned from a comfortable, well-defined and God-given domain, with heaven above and hell below, to a huge globe, with no discernible up or down. Ships laden with untold riches and tall tales were arriving from newly discovered lands, forcing people to confront new ideas. The new territories gave rise to new rivalries between nations keen to exploit them. Even the English language changed, particularly in its pronunciation.
[...]

Music changed as much as any other area of life. For the first time, instrumental music broke free from vocal models, and music was composed specifically for instruments. New musical instruments were invented. Some of them were dropped almost immediately, and now survive only as illustrations to puzzle and confuse instrument makers. Some, like the bandora, had a brief but honourable career. Others, like the violin, are still with us. Old instruments like the fiddle, rebec and gittern either went out of fashion and disappeared, or were changed beyond recognition.

Assorted plucked strings, c.1610

  thanks to dublog