The taishōgoto 大正琴 - Nagoya harp (made by Gorō Morita)

The taishōgoto 大正琴, or Nagoya harp, is a Japanese stringed musical instrument. The name derives from the Taishō period (1912–1926) when the instrument first appeared.

The Taishōgoto was developed in 1912 by the musician Gorō Morita in Nagoya. He had received a scholarship from the first prime minister of Japan to study music instruments in Europe and the United States for two years. He subsequently came up with the idea of combining the mechanics of a typewriter with an instrument.

The taishōgoto consists of a long, hollow box with strings running its length. Above the strings are a span of numbered typewriter-like keys, which when depressed fret or shorten the strings to raise their pitch. It is played lengthwise and strummed. There are also electrified versions of the instrument.

SOURCE WIKIPEDIA