The system of describing organ pipes or harpsichord strings with a particular number of "feet" is a way of relating the pitch actually sounded by the pipe or the string to the conventional pitch assig
This unusual harpsichord made by Bartolomeo Cristofori has three choirs of strings, at 8-foot, 4-foot, and 2-foot pitch. The three separate bridges needed for these choirs may be seen on the soundboard (click to enlarge)
Orgel der Nikolaikirche in Berlin 04
Leopoldo Franciolini was an Italian antique dealer who was active in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is remembered as a fraudster who sold faked and altered historical musical instruments.
This clavicytherium, sold by Franciolini and kept in the Hans Adler Collection of Musical Instruments today, is unlike any authentically attested instrument of this kind. It formed part of the prosecution's evidence in Franciolini's criminal trial; see below.
An ottavino (tiny harpsichord, one octave higher in pitch than standard) thought to be a Franciolini fabrication. See main text for details.