A mandolin is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of eight
Neapolitan mandolin
In 1787, Luigi Bassi played the role of Don Giovanni in Mozart's opera, serenading a woman with a mandolin. This used to be the common picture of the mandolin, an obscure instrument of romance in the hands of a Spanish nobleman
Clockwise from top left: 1920 Gibson F-4 mandolin; 1917 Gibson H-2 mandola; 1929 Gibson mando-bass; and 1924 Gibson K-4 mandocello from Gregg Miner's collection